Just as I can be so Cruel
by irishgrlnextdoor
Summary: Revamped and Rebooted, the 2010 original by Chemical-love aka Irishgrlnextdoor. Sarah beat the labyrinth and won back her brother, but nothing is as it seems and Jareth isn't about to let her or his heir go so easily. Dark Jareth non con dark themes etc
1. Chapter 1

This is going to be awkward, but I cannot put it off any longer. Five years is enough...

Just As I Can Be So Cruel by Chemical-Love aka Irishgrlnextdoor (originally posted in 2010 and finished/self-removed in 2012) will begin the process of reposting.

I owe everyone an explanation, I mean it when I say it was self-removed, along with any and all my other works. I saw that there were a lot of guesses as to why this happened at the time, but the fact of the matter is that I removed everything because I felt at the time and for a long time after that it was holding me back as a writer. Let me explain that; I am proud of the work I did, I was never ashamed of it and although some people misunderstood it I never felt bad about the story or felt it needed to be pulled or changed for any nae-sayers or anti-fans. I still don't. I was deep into the world of Labyrinth and the success and popularity of all my works in this field were thrilling and deeply humbling, but I was just having fun writing it. I wasn't taking it as seriously as the work might have suggested and I knew all along that I could do better both in plot and overall story telling. It was easy and addicting, however, and took my focus away from feeling as though I had to work on my own stuff or my skill sets. It became a distraction for me.

Everyone's support was wonderful and encouraging, but I was addicted to the instant gratification of writing up a chapter and lapping up that response I would get from it and that was entirely my own fault. It became more important to me to focus on the fanfictions than it was my original work. By taking away the distraction and taking a hiatus, I was able to truly focus, perfect and complete that original work -more information to follow on that at a later time as well- and I feel I have grown substantially since my time spent on JAICBSC.

That being said, I will be reposting this story because I feel I have grown past the addiction and distraction I mentioned above and I felt I unfairly managed to jade a few of you in the process, which was never my intent. I apologize to those of you and hope that you are forgiving as fellow Labyrinth fans. I did see that some were able to save and even share this story illegally and without permission, to keep some fans tide over, but I feel the need to repost at the original and true source anyway.

I will not be retracting in the future. Ever. I will not be altering the original content very much, but I do want to improve the spelling and grammar a bit as I repost chapters and on that note I am looking for a beta reader whom can assist. If you think seeing these chapters a few days before others to smooth it out may be something that appeals to you, and you know the differences between there their and they're and then and than, then please PM me.

For those of you that have questions or wish to give me a piece of your mind you may PM me as well, I have enabled it once more. I look forward to reposting.

X

[Disclaimer: I don't own the Labyrinth or the characters that dwell there and am not getting paid for any of this. I do it purely for pleasure ;).

FYI in this story I will tweak the ending of the movie (the tiniest bit) and as a further FYI Jareth is DARK in this story. Yay for dark Jareth ;).

Last FYI I also write all my stories as though Sarah was eighteen.]

X

"Fair well my lady, and remember… should you need us…" Sir Didymus gently reminded her before his kind and furry image faded from the mirror's reflection. Sarah stared back at the mirror like it was the only thing in the world that mattered as the wrinkled image of her friend Hoggle replaced the brave fox knight. "Yeah," he continued, his wrinkled and weathered face taking away none of the tenderness and caring that filled his eyes, "Should you need us, for any reason…"

Sarah couldn't help the tightening in her chest that came from the love she felt for her friends and that she knew they felt for her. It was so surreal, she had run the labyrinth, taken on the goblin city, faced off with the Goblin King and rescued her baby brother… and now it was all over and she was supposed to leave it all behind.

She fought herself to keep from making a scene with her sobs but couldn't keep the tears from slipping down her cheeks. She did need her friends, that much she was sure of. They had been what made Toby's rescue possible. She loved them like they were her real family.

"But I do need you Hoggle," she confessed in barely more than a whisper.

The image on the mirror smiled at her lovingly before dissipating. She placed her hand against the cool glass of the mirror, as if testing if it was still solid. It held firm underneath her skin. She had no idea how she would be able to contact her friends again if she needed to, but she believed fully and honestly that Hoggle would be there for her when she truly needed his help, just like he had been in the labyrinth. She got up from her vanity and went over to her bed, sitting down on the side as she gazed at her print of the Escher room; so much like where she had had her final showdown with the goblin king.

It was all over now, and she felt equal amounts of regret and relief inside her.

Sarah suddenly heard the sound of a door opening and closing down the hall and turned her head toward her own door to listen better.

Her father and stepmother had _already_ gone to bed, having made it back from dinner and the play. She could have sworn that she had heard their door though. The fact that it was her baby brother's door too since he slept in the same room was what made her spring to her feet and go to her door as goosebumps popped up all over her arms and legs. After what she had just gone through she wasn't about to assume it was nothing and go to bed.

She looked down the hall, hoping to see her dad going to the bathroom or something. There was nothing, but her father and stepmother's door was certainly cracked open and they always slept with it closed. Karen always hated to leave it opened at night.

Sarah crept down the hall towards the door, intent on just taking a quick peek to make sure everything was alright and then go back to bed. There were noises starting to filter out from just inside her parent's and Toby's room though, the sounds of cloth shuffling and the faint creaking of floor boards as something moved across them.

 _ **'**_ Goblins!' her paranoid mind shouted at her.

Sarah reached out to push the door wide open when it suddenly did so of its own accord and a tall slim figure appeared in the door frame. Sarah let out a startled scream despite herself and flung herself back from the door, only to blush red like a tomato when she registered that Karen was in her night robe looking down at Sarah with a startled expression on her face. "Sarah?"

"What is it?" came her father's tired voice from deeper inside the room. No doubt he was already in bed and trying to sleep for the night.

"It's just Sarah honey, I was going to get a drink of water and I spooked her when I opened the door is all," Karen answered.

Sarah felt very foolish as she pulled herself to her feet, Karen offered her a hand but she didn't accept it.

Her stepmother came out into the hall and pulled the door closed behind her so as to not disturb Richard and Toby further. Sarah pretended to be smoothing imaginary wrinkles out of her shirt as Karen turned back to her. "Sarah what were you doing out here? Why aren't you in bed?"

"I had heard your door open and-"

Sarah stopped right there. What was she supposed to say, 'I thought that the Goblin King I had wished Toby away to while you were out had come back to reclaim him'? Cause that wouldn't go over well whether Karen believed her or not.

"Sarah," Karen continued, bringing the girl out of her thoughts and back into the hall. "I wanted to ask you something about Toby actually, about while we were gone…"

Sarah tensed up all over as she waited for Karen to somehow magically piece together that Toby had just spent hours in the castle at the center of the goblin city.

Her stepmother was also tense, her arms wrapped around her chest and her eyes holding some kind of deep emotion that Sarah couldn't guess at. "Did you- that is, did you have any boys over here while your father and I were out?" Karen asked, keeping her voice down and her features schooled as best she could.

Sarah hadn't expected that. "No, why?"

Karen raised an eyebrow like she didn't entirely believe her, but her eyes were un accusing for a change as she continued. "It's just that when I kissed Toby good night he smelled… different. Like a man's cologne or something."

Sarah thought back to when she had been standing there with the king on the hill before entering his labyrinth. The wind had been blowing and he had been directly upwind, saying something about how time was short. He had smelled wonderful and despite herself she had noticed. It was like he had bottled everything he represented, raw power wrapped in sophistication with hints of cunning and danger. It had entered her senses as smoothly as a seduction and she had remembered being floored by the smell for a second or two before she had realized he had just given her thirteen hours to solve the labyrinth and save her brother. "I didn't have any _boys_ over," she said honestly again.

Karen nodded in agreement like she wanted to believe it enough to not really question it. "I was just making sure. Did you hear anything weird at all? It was just you and Toby in this house all night right?"

Karen was acting strange, but Sarah couldn't blame her. She had just smelled an unfamiliar cologne on her baby; any mother worth her spit would be concerned over that.

"It was just us," Sarah lied this time. She held the gaze of her step mother because she knew she had to. Lucky for her she was a good enough actress to also be a decent liar. Karen turned away first in defeat. "I was just making sure is all," she muttered as she descended the stairs to the living room. Her eyes remained a thousand miles away though and Sarah was sure she was trying to still piece it together in her head. Let her wonder, Toby was safe now and that was the important thing.

X

"You have it ready?" Jareth demanded more than questioned as he entered the room.

The medic that Jareth kept at his castle jumped slightly at his kings approach but steadied himself before turning back to his work. "Your majesty is impatient."

"Do not ask me to show patience in this matter as it is far too important," Jareth hissed at the shorter male. He stepped around the table piled high with utensils and tools for the healer, his patience gone and his temper rising. He was already in a frenzy and it was just getting worse and worse.

"I am done and the results are back. It is exactly what you believed, your majesty," the male confirmed.

Jareth's heart leapt at the news, doing little for his anger but causing him to smile slightly none the less. "And now there is nothing to stop me," Jareth said to himself more than the medic as he turned and left the room. He had much to do.

X

Karen leaned against the counter of her kitchen and sipped at her glass of water slowly. She lifted her free hand up to inspect it again. It was still trembling slightly. Outside she could hear the sound of a light rain picking up again. It was probably going to be showering on and off again all night.

She took another sip. Sarah had said it had just been her and Toby all night, but that smell…

Funny how such a familiar smell could cause her such instant grief and dread, and after so long too. Karen was trying her best to convince herself that she was wrong, that it wasn't that, but her common sense refused to let her lie to herself. Perhaps it was possible Sarah had known nothing of anyone coming into the house. No, she would have known at some point. Karen poured herself another glass and forced herself to remember that there was no way it was possible in any case. There were rules that had to be followed and those rules were protecting them all. They had for the better part of two years now.

"Karen?"

Karen let out a yelp of her own and spun around, nearly dropping her glass as she steadied herself on the counter. Sarah stared back at her in surprise. "Oh for crying out loud Sarah you scared me half to death!" Karen gasped, her tone a little harsher than she had meant for it to be.

Outside a flash of lightning lit up the sky, followed seconds later by a low rumble of rolling thunder that Sarah would have said any other night was the sound of dragons growling as they flew across the sky.

Sarah stayed where she was near the door way. "I just wanted you to know that you don't need to worry Karen, about Toby and all. He's safe with me." There was a soft sincerity to the words the girl had spoken. Karen wasn't sure how to respond to it. She wished it was true, but Sarah was just a child. If real danger ever came to her son what would Sarah be able to do? She would only get hurt if she did try to protect him. Rather than saying so Karen simply smiled and nodded her head. "Thank you Sarah, I know."

Let the child delude herself. She seemed to live in delusions everyday. She'd grow up yet, but for now Karen simply tolerated the girl's healthy imagination. There was no doubt though that, for a girl who was going to be 18 in just a couple of months, she was overly prone to imagination and fairytales. Karen looked down at her water and smiled wistfully. How she could relate to the girl. She had learned her own lessons though growing up that fairytales are nothing more than fairytales.

"Would you like a glass of water?" Karen asked Sarah.

She hesitated, but nodded her head and stepped further into the room. The lights went off at that second and Sarah cursed.

"Sarah, language!" Karen scolded through the darkness. The storm had knocked out the power. Karen looked out the window to see how bad the storm was, only to frown when she saw that the streetlight across the road was still on. She could see lights on in a house down the road too.

"What is it Karen?" Sarah asked, moving slowly through the kitchen so she wouldn't bump into anything.

The sound of a tiny creature's laughter caused the blood to drain from both the women's faces and the hairs to stand up on the backs of their necks. Karen could feel her heart skip a beat, only to then fill with a dread and fear so deep it made her heart pound so hard it could have flown out of her chest at any minute. She turned toward the kitchen doorway but it was too late, Sarah was already running out and towards the stairs. "Sarah!" Karen called out frantically, racing after her stepdaughter in the dark. She almost smacked right into the girl just inside the living room door.

Sarah had stopped abruptly in her tracks, staring up at the top of the staircase with a dread that most people reserved for when they see hell's gates in front of them. Karen felt as if that would have been preferable though as her eyes climbed the stairs up to the very tall and slim figure of a man dressed in what she knew was formfitting black armor underneath the blue-speckled black cape he had wrapped around his body. Most of him hidden in shadows of the darkness the house was now plunged into. He stared back down at Karen with his intense mismatched eyes.

Karen felt her hand go over her chest like her body really did believe she was in danger of her heart exploding with how fast and hard it was pounding out blood. She would have expected to see loathing on the man's face, or at least some form of intense hatred. Instead he looked triumphant, an expression that rocked her to her core. She had all but forgotten about her stepdaughter when Sarah broke the silence.

"What are you doing here? I beat you!" the girl practically wailed.

Jareth turned his gaze on the girl and gave her such a disdainful look that Karen instinctively pulled Sarah into her arms to try to protect her from whatever was about to happen. Her words had not been lost on Karen though, sinking into the very pit of her soul. "Sarah what have you done?" Karen cried out, only to find she had barely whispered it as it left her lips.

"Do keep your voices down," Jareth drawled in a very calm and low voice from atop the stairs, "We wouldn't want… Roger," he said the man's name like it was a foul word, "To wake up and try anything heroic while my goblins are in the room with him now would we."

Karen felt like she was going to curl up into a ball and start weeping hysterically at any moment in light of her deepest fears becoming reality. The only thing keeping her up was the girl she had her arms wrapped around.

Jareth swept back his cloak and revealed that he was holding a sleeping Toby between the crook of his arm and his body. "Such a charming boy really, despite his surroundings and ill upbringing thus far."

Sarah sagged a little under her own pressing grief and Karen no longer had the strength of body to stand, falling to the ground like a worthless doll as her eyes stayed glued on her son in the goblin king's arms, tears pooling on the floor beneath her head. This couldn't be happening, it just couldn't.

"No," Sarah insisted, clearly having no clue as to what was really going on here. "I ran your labyrinth and beat you at your own game. You can't do this!"

Jareth raised an amused eyebrow and started to slowly make his way down the staircase, watching the two of them from over the railing. "Oh really?"

Karen could hear so many things screaming around inside her head, but her mouth was useless, just a part of her body she had no function for like her underarm or the left side of her waist, it was just there as another part of a whole mass holding organs. She forced herself to swallow past the lump in her throat that was threatening to suffocate her, barely able to choke out a coherent word. "Y-you can't t-t-t-take my son… n-not my son."

He smirked down at her before looking down at the babe in his arms. "Actually I can, I already did so once tonight with Sarah's help."

Karen looked over at Sarah, seeking answers as to why her world was crumbling before her very eyes.

Sarah continued to glare defiantly at the powerful man before them.

"Don't blame her too much for the loss of your son," Jareth continued as he reached the landing at the turn of the staircase. "After all, she never expected the goblins to really come and take the child away. You should be pleased to know that she fought to get him back most splendidly." There was a slight bitterness to his tone. "In the end though he is mine to keep."

"No he's not!" Karen found herself crying out, only to then remember that if Roger woke up he would be killed. She forced herself to grab the last bit of her control and lower her voice. "He's my son, mine and Roger's and you can't take him away from me."

The hatred was starting to seep into Jareth's eyes now. He clutched Toby a little tighter against his body and Karen could see the futility of her pleas. "Jareth no!" she cried out, beyond the point of reason or reserve, lounging forward mere inches from her spot on the floor.

Sarah whirled around to face Karen in surprise as the woman addressed the male by name, turning her back on the goblin king, "Jareth?"

At the same time the goblin king sprang down the last three stairs to the ground floor right next to Sarah with as much grace as a large cat would hold, wrapping his free arm around Sarah's arms and waist in a steel grip and easily pulling her back out of Karen's reach in the confusion. "That man up there and you both dealt me a very great insult. I have my revenge at last and now it will be the both of you that will wake up to find that the most precious things in your world are now lost to you forever."

"You can't take them!" Karen screeched, past reason now to try keeping her voice down. "This will never be allowed, they have nothing to do with you! You have no power over them any more than you do over me!"

Toby had woken up at the sound of his mother's cries and Sarah, as confused as the poor girl was, was struggling for everything she was worth in the Goblin King's grip. "Actually it is allowed, and I have Sarah to thank for the power she has given me over herself and Toby. I intend to give her a fitting reward for it," he grinned horrendously just before the three of them disappeared, leaving behind only a cloud of sparkling magic dust that turned dull the moment it hit the floor.

It was less than a minute later that Roger, who had woken up alone in bed to the sound of his wife's shouting was racing down the stairs, only to find his wife laying on the ground shaking and trembling with the force of her cries of pure anguish that filled the whole house with sound.


	2. Chapter 2

Sarah sat on the goblin king's throne with her legs pulled up against her chest, wide eyed, frightened, and looking around at the numerous goblins that filled the room, in shock that she was even back here to begin with. The goblins shuffled about but stayed quiet for the most part, casting side-long glances in her direction now and then. Some were armed with spears and daggers, and Sarah was sure she had seen one of the ugly little beasts carrying a battle axe twice it's own size.

After she had been taken back here to the king's throne room he had dumped her into the chair and had taken Toby out of the room with him, not saying one word to her or anybody else as he left her with the horde of gristly looking goblins.

She was shaking all over from her fear, confusion and the adrenaline that had flooded her system when he had grabbed her back at the house. What the hell had happened? She scarcely knew how she had gotten into this situation since one minute she had been in the kitchen with Karen and the next thing she knew she was surrounded by goblins for the second time in one night.

She was really scared now; she couldn't deny it. This wasn't supposed to happen. It wasn't part of her story book that she had read through all those times in the park. The story had ended with the heroine saying the words, reclaiming her child and then everything would return to the way it was before. There were no guidelines or any hint of what she could expect to happen now.

The sound of footsteps echoing in the stone hallway just outside the door had the goblins all rushing around instantly to make sure they would be out of the way of their master's boots. The goblin king came into view from the hall and in through the doorway. He had discarded his cape but the black armor still incased his body from toe to chin. He glanced at Sarah as though she was little more than just mere furniture before turning to look around at the goblins. "Leave," he commanded them. His tone hadn't been harsh, but rather bored.

All the same, they all ran for the doors and windows as fast as they could but not fast enough apparently because he repeated his command as he shoved one out the door with the heel of his boot. Sarah really wished they had stayed. As frightening as they were she was more afraid of the goblin king. He looked tired, but over all pleased as he turned back to her. "Get off of the throne, Sarah," he commanded, his tone even softer this time.

She didn't argue as he stepped forward. She would have gotten up anyway to be able to move away from him if nothing else. She climbed out of the seat as quickly as she could and rushed around the throne so it was between her and the tall blonde man before her. What had Karen called him again? Jareth? That was something else that was making Sarah's head spin like a twister, it had really seemed like Karen knew exactly who he was and what he was there for back at the house. But how would she know?

Jareth plopped down onto the throne where she had been sitting, not caring in the least that his back was to her. It was like he simply expected her to move into his line of vision to accommodate him. She stayed by the wall and well out of reach as she moved around to where she could see his face, this of course also meant that he could see her now but she had questions that she expected answers to. Jareth looked back at her in silent speculation like he was judging a dog at a show or something. She couldn't quite read his expression beyond that.

"Where is my brother? What have you done with Toby?" Sarah demanded, a bit of her anxiety at the present situation creeping into her voice.

Jareth swung an armor clad leg up onto the curved arm of the throne, getting to the point of completely relaxing. "I put him to bed, he should not be up so late and that wretched woman woke him up before we left," he said nonchalantly. "Sit down Sarah."

She wasn't about to sit down regardless, but she still pointed out to him that he had taken the only seat in the room just to be defiant.

Jareth spread his hands out with his palms up as if gesturing for her to look around. "There is plenty of floor for you in here."

Sarah glared back at him for that. He could go to hell if he thought she was going to sit down on the floor. "You can't keep us here. I ran the labyrinth," she insisted once more, "You have no power over me!"

Jareth's eyes narrowed. "I told you to sit."

She wasn't going to be bullied like this. Sarah held her head up high. "You. Have. No. Power. Over Me." She said each word clearly and with as much force as she could.

Jareth's legs swung back over onto the floor and he stood up and crossed the room over to Sarah before she had hardly realized what he was doing. He was right in front of her before she had even started to back up, gripping her upper arm and pulling her to the side. His foot shot out in front of her legs and she tripped over them, the only thing keeping her from falling flat on her face being that he still had a hold on her arm. Her hip still hit the stone floor with force though, causing her to cry out at the pain that shot through her torso. He let go of her arm but he had gripped her so hard that she was sure she would end up with bruises from his fingers digging into her skin. She cradled her arm against her body, staring up at Jareth in shock as he towered over her. His eyes were unyielding as he gazed down at her, completely unfazed. "I. Said. Sit."

She couldn't help but feel afraid of him then. Never mind the fact that he had just man-handled her, it was the look of anger and the promise of more force in his mismatched eyes that scared her more than anything. She staid where she was and kept her mouth shut, hoping that if she didn't say or do anything further to anger him that he would back off. After a couple seconds of his eyes daring her to protest further he moved back a couple paces and finally turned his back on her again, going back over to his throne and sitting back down. He leaned back but didn't get as relaxed this time.

"Stay there till I say otherwise," he drawled, "I meant what I said about intending to reward you but that does not mean I am entirely pleased with you right now. In all honesty Sarah from the very beginning it was my intension to have you wish away the babe to me. I simply never expected you to turn down my initial reward of your dreams, or to end up making it through my labyrinth. You did wonderfully I have to admit, but you did make quite a mess out of things," his face was serious but his tone was considerably lighter, like he was teasing her or something.

"Reward me?" she asked before she could stop herself. Why would he want to reward her? She had no idea what he was talking about.

"Yes reward you, I figure it is the least I can do for you after you gave me what I wanted most in both this world and yours. You practically served him up on a platter really."

Sarah could scarcely believe it. "Toby? What do you mean?"

"The child you call Toby was stolen from me," Jareth said in the same almost bored drawl, "Since it was you who returned him to me I see that to be fitting for a reward.

"No you stole him from me!" Sarah persevered, just short of yelling at the king.

She knew instantly that she should have kept quiet when his eyes darkened and he stood up from his seat again. "You have been trying my temper and now you insult me." Jareth's fists were clinched at his sides and he was tense all over. Sarah bit her lip to make sure she didn't say another word. "I am not a thief. To make such an accusation again would not bode well for you. I simply found a way to reclaim what was rightfully mine all along. You see the babe you think is your Toby actually is not. He is my Jareth, my next of kin and heir to the throne."

Sarah sat in stunned silence. He was nuts; Toby was the son of Karen and her father. She hadn't even been pregnant when she had met and married her father, though it had all happened extremely quickly. She sat up a little straighter in her spot on the floor, still clutching her arm but no longer because it was sore. At this point she just needed to hold onto something. Since herself was the only option she opted for that.

"You doubt my words do you?" Jareth smirked. "Your father knew Carrie for how long before they were married?"

Sarah frowned at that. Carrie? Her name was Karen.

Jareth noticed the confusion on her face and let out a sigh, relaxing just the slightest bit. "I forgot she had changed her name, but rest assure that I am speaking of your step mother. She had not been with him long before she found herself with child had she?" he asked in a mocking tone.

Sarah remembered it because she had been so mad at her father for being reckless and getting Karen pregnant just days after he had started dating her. They had eloped only another month or two after that before she had started to show. The whole thing had been very upsetting for Sarah. Her father had always warned Sarah since she had been fourteen about boys and she shouldn't ever have sex with a guy until after she was married or at least in love. Then he had started dating Karen and the next thing everyone had known they had _had_ to get married. It had turned out alright she guessed, since her father was still very happy to be with Karen and she had Toby as a half-brother, but all the same she had not been at all happy at the time.

"Carrie, er- Karen was a young mortal girl when I first met her, a little like you in the sense that she too was a dreamer. She was a very charming girl though, very sweet." His voice was soft, barely a whisper, but there was a look of anger in his eyes. His head was turned away from her, like he was unaware he was talking to anyone at all. He looked back up at her and Sarah couldn't help but startle slightly at the sharpness in his eyes being turned on her so suddenly. If he had noticed he said nothing about it. "I took her as my wife," he continued, "Bringing her here to live with me in my world. Towards the very end of our relationship she started craving her independence and rebelling against me, but she was too reckless and naïve to be allowed the kind of free rein that she desired. She tried running away from me a few times, but I found her each time. The last time she found a way over into the aboveground to escape me. I couldn't follow her."

Something very dark and dangerous passed through his eyes and he let out a sigh like the mere thought was a bother to him. "I had not known she was pregnant when she escaped me, and I doubt that even she did, but she did find out soon after and then arranged to have that human man she had run into think it was his child. She knew it was my child though. I have planned for a way to get a hold of my son ever since so that I could be sure of my paternity to him and then usher him into his proper future."

Jareth smirked at Sarah then. "It just so happened that the human that my reckless ex-wife had left me for had a daughter of his own, an actress in fact. I watched both your father and you through my crystals. It was when I first saw you acting out a piece from Hamlet in the park that I knew you would be very special for me and my plans. It took time, but in less than a year I had crafted a story that I knew you wouldn't be able to resist. Then all I had to do was leave it for you to find."

He paused in his explanations and Sarah hoped it was an opportunity for her to speak again. She parted her mouth slightly and when Jareth simply waited for more she went ahead and licked her dry lips so she could speak. "I wrote the book for me?" she asked to clarify, thinking back to the day she had first found the little red book.

"And I had one of my goblins leave it in the garden for you," he nodded.

Sarah couldn't keep the frown off her face. "But I don't understand, why didn't you just come and get Toby yourself before this if you indeed thought he was your son? Leaving a book behind in hopes that I might find it, read it, then like it enough to act it out was a pretty big chance to take."

His eyes took on a much softer look then and a grim smile pulled at the corner of his lips. "I would have taken any chance I could to get my son back, and I am unable to pass to the above world unless I am summoned there. There are certain ties I hold between myself and the labyrinth that bound me to it."

Did that mean if she got back to her world she would be safe from him like Karen had been? She still couldn't see Karen ever being with someone like this man, but then again she knew nothing about Karen before her father had met the woman. No one had seemed to. She had said she was originally from overseas but little else. She hadn't had a job because she had just arrived days before and that she was without family of any kind. And her father had been so smitten with her that he hadn't really cared to inquire too much about her past. She'd never mentioned (as far as Sarah knew) anything about being married once, or that she had run away, or that she was from a world where goblins existed and she was two hundred years old. Something like that would have stuck out in Sarah's mind.

Jareth seemed so sure of it though, and as far as she knew he had never told her any lies nor did he have much reason to make up this wild story now. He had her brother… at least, what she had assumed was her brother… so he didn't need to make up a story about how Karen had run off on him with his son or anything. Then there was the fact that Karen had really seemed to know him right away when he had returned to the house. She had been the one to call out his name after all.

The more Sarah thought about it the more it seemed to make sense to her. She didn't understand all of it, but what she did understand so far seemed to not be as far-fetched as she had first regarded it to be. She looked at Jareth. Really looked at him; his eyes, facial structures, the color of his hair. Maybe Toby was his, he did look a bit like him. His hair was going to be the same shade of blonde that much she could see. She supposed she could kind of see it in the ears and lips too.

Jareth retook his seat, his eyes staring intensely at Sarah once again. "You played your part beautifully by the way, saying your right words to allow the travel of my goblins and myself to come and reclaim the babe. Truly I must thank you for that. I had been rather disappointed that you couldn't just leave well enough alone and insisted on running my labyrinth, however. While you were in the process of…" he paused on the word, "Cheating… your way through to my castle I was able to not only spend time with my son, but one of my physicians took some DNA samples to confirm my suspicions through medicinal magic."

This time it was Sarah who was offended. "I didn't cheat, I beat your labyrinth fair and square."

Jareth threw his head back and laughed so loudly and abruptly that it caused her to jump halfway out of her skin in fright. Jareth slowly got a hold of himself, still chuckling slightly as he placed his hand on his hip and summoned a crystal with his free hand, turning it around his fingers in a most bored manor. "Oh pardon me for laughing but that is far from the truth little one."

Sarah kept her mouth shut this time but still glared back at him.

Jareth raised his eyebrow in amusement. "Lets see, you first only got into the labyrinth because of that dwarf, Hedgehog, then you used him to also get you out of the oubliette by bribing him. Then there was that fox and great beast you also enlisted into your aid. Taking and turning my subjects against me for your own benefit, a gutsy move indeed. You would have never made it through on your own though." Jareth lifted his legs up once again to rest on the arm of his chair, something Sarah was suspecting he did often when he sat there.

She wanted to correct him for messing up her friends name, but thought better about it. What would it solve when she had done it before and he still hadn't bothered to remember? Besides, there was a more pressing matter that she needed answers to. "What are you going to do with us?"

"As I said, Jareth will be brought up in this world with me," he said, referring to the babe, "That much has already been decided by the counsel. It is what's best for him really. I would be damned before I allowed my child to live and grow in a world that is void of magic and where he would be a commoner. His royal blood demands respect and that is what he will have."

"And me? You said you only wanted Toby but-

"Jareth," Jareth said.

"What?"

"His name is not Toby like that wretched woman chose. His name is Jareth and I wish for you to address him as such." His eyes still held their intensity and Sarah really wished that he would look elsewhere, anywhere is but directly at her. It was almost too much to be looked at like that.

None the less she would hold firm on this, maybe he didn't know Hoggle's name, but he wasn't going to get her to start calling him 'Hedgehog' any sooner than he was going to get her to call Toby 'Jareth'. He had been Toby since he was born and that wasn't going to change in her opinion just because the goblin king wanted it to. "Why did you bring me here too if you only wanted my brother?"

"He is not your brother Sarah," Jareth sighed. He brought his long legs down so he was actually sitting on the throne. He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. "You remember the story you told him, right before you wished him away to me? About the girl who was over worked by her wicked stepmother and the king of the goblins fell in love with her?"

Sarah tensed up all over to the point that she barely dared to breathe. 'It was true?" she asked in barely more than a whisper.

Jareth chuckled again at that. "Of course not, why would I be in love with you?"

She wasn't sure what showed on her face but he smiled at her reassuringly.

"Don't worry Sarah, I had still found you to be a rather amusing girl… being pretty and sweet and all. In love with you though, no." The smile disappeared from his face then. "You had rejected my gift though. You were still upset with being burdened by the babe and you had many dreams that you wanted so bad you could taste them, but you still threw them away in exchange for the safe return of my son to you. I think it was then that I realized just what kind of girl you were, and that I'd be a fool to allow you to run my labyrinth. I tried giving you more chances to reconsider, I'm sure you remember."

Sarah let out an involuntary shudder at the memory of the snake he had thrown at her, but he had given her other chances beyond that. She nodded her head slowly to show that she was paying attention and understood what he was referring to.

He gave a short nod of his own. "So in the end I had no choice but to allow you to accept my challenge." He smirked at her once again. "In all honesty though I was a little happy you did accept, I love games you see."

There was something about the way he said that that made Sarah's skin crawl. She needed to calm down before her body started to shake uncontrollably from nerves and stress, as it was already well on it's way to that point. She was over exhausted and hungry and none of this was making it easier on her.

"You never gave up though, as I had expect you would. Every time I pushed you to a point where you should have fallen you got up again; not just because you have a fighter's spirit or a will for survival, both of which I admire greatly in a woman, but because you thought that that babe was in danger."

He gave her a genuine smile then and Sarah could only stare back in stricken awe and confusion. "I could plainly see then that my child meant more to you than yourself even. It was that knowledge that made me start to allow myself to feel you and ponder the possibilities. It was far better than I could have ever planned really, if I were to take you as my next wife not only would I assuredly have a fit mother for my son, but I would have taken the perfect revenge on both of the mortals that insulted me so with their love. After all, I would have the very things they held most dear to their hearts."

Sarah couldn't believe this, it was unthinkable. As his next wife? Mother to the babe she had known up until minutes ago was her half-brother? It was ludicrous. She needed to find Toby and get out of here. They needed to get back to their own world somehow.

Jareth scowled at her and all thoughts flew from her mind from the new malice she felt drifting about him like his cloak had. "But you had rejected me when I had taken the first step in showing you what it could be like between us Sarah, in the bubble. You would have become part of a world made up of the very finest things in life, a world of magic and wonder would be at your disposal and you would have had anything you wanted if in return I could have had you." His scowl deepened, "Again you threw away your dreams and I wanted and loved you all the more for it. When you reached my castle though it was obvious to me that you cared for the babe and the babe alone. Even still I gave you another chance to have both little Jareth and myself. I meant it when I said I had done it all for you, reordered time and the stars to bring you to me. Did you really think that you had battled the actual goblin army with your rag-tag friends and won? After the ball I was determined to have you reach me to the point that I would have happily just had you brought straight to this very room, but the story was also something that was important to you, so I allowed you to go on with it."

He let out a defeated sigh and looked down at the floor rather than her. "I gave you a second chance to have everything when I proposed to you, and you did more than simply turn down my offer; you practically broke my heart. The babe was safe and no longer an issue, but still you turned me down. I wanted you for my own so much and you had no reason to deny me, but still you had dared."

He stood up from his seat then and made his way over to her. Sarah felt her heart immediately speed up as he moved closer and she was powerless to do anything but sit there and watch him approach, like his eyes had hypnotized her to the spot. His movements were non threatening, but she still wanted to keep distance between them just in case. She had seen before just how quickly his moods could change.

She received the next big shock of the night when Jareth kneeled down in front of her, coming down to her level. His eyes were considerably softer as he stared at her this time. She couldn't help but think he looked the same as he had back at their final encounter, like he wanted something from her that she couldn't understand the dept of, and truly intended to have it.

"I mentioned a reward for returning my son to me," he said in a hushed tone since he was much closer to her. "I offer it to you now." His eyes were still just as intense as ever, but now they looked out at her from under heavy lids. Sarah had seen that look on men in magazines before and Karen had always referred to it as the models giving the camera 'bedroom eyes'. He reached out and she wasn't sure what stopped her, but she managed not to flinch as his gloved fingers captured a long strand of her hair that had fallen over her shoulder. She watched as he held the strand between them, his thumb rubbing over the strand like he was caressing it. "I am going to offer you a final chance to choose me as a king and husband to you. As I said before, all you have to do Sarah is love me, fear me, and do as I say. If you do that, I promise you that you can have everything you want."

He was truly and undeniably insane.

Husband? She felt stunned and was suddenly happy that she was indeed sitting. She didn't want him, she wanted her father and Karen and Toby and to be home with all of them once more. His brows came down just the slightest bit in light of her hesitance and uncertainty, making his expression look instantly sharper. Sarah gulped back her immediate and flat rejection at the thought of how he might react to it if he was getting upset again over a simple hesitation. "What if I say no?" she asked, her voice strained and coming out in hardly more than the whisper.

"You wouldn't want to do that."

"But if I did?" Sarah asked, despite her growing fear that now she was trapped in a castle with a madman and numerous goblins.

Jareth didn't let go of the strand of her hair, merely gripped it in his fist now, using it keep her from backing up any as he leaned in closer. Sarah startled and tried to pull back at first, only to stop at the slight pain it caused. She couldn't move back without pulling her hair from her very scalp. Jareth didn't stop until his face was only centimeters from her, close enough that she could feel his warm breath on her lips. His eyes were sharp as daggers as he looked down upon her. "Then it will be much harder on you when I take you as my queen regardless. I'm offering you the ability to choose this path, but in the end it is the only one you have."

Sarah's mouth gaped and she completely forgot about everything but what he had just said for an instant. She didn't have any say in the matter of her own marriage? She couldn't marry him, she was only seventeen besides the matter that she didn't love him at all. What kind of reward was this? The choice was to be forced to do something she didn't want to do or to do it on her own anyway despite that she didn't want to do it. Sarah couldn't stop herself from shaking her head at how ridiculous this was. "M-marry you? I don't want to marry you, I want to go home! I want you to give me back my brother and send us home!" she was starting to wail now but she didn't care, her mind was racing too fast for her to keep up with and it felt like the world was spinning out of control.

Jareth scowled at her then, leaning back only a scant inch or two. "Sarah, obviously you do not understand. You can't go back to Aboveground, I have met with the counsel and they have already agreed that since the babe is undeniably my son and that you would make the perfect mother to him that it was within my rights to use the window of opportunity I had to bring you both back with me. I was able to do so because when I had kept to the terms of our agreement and returned you both to your home after you ran my labyrinth, the gateway was still open to me for a little longer. It is sure to have closed up entirely by now. You are of this world now as much as I am. There is no going back to the Aboveground."

Sarah's mouth was still gaping, but now it was because she was trying to breathe past the lump in her throat. She could barely breathe through it. Her vision began to blur then from her tears and she immediately pulled away from Jareth with all her strength, not giving a damn if he ripped out all her hair as she twisted away from him. He let go of the strand of his own accord and said nothing as her body shook with the force of the tears now spilling down her eyes.

She was exhausted and distraught and she had just been told she will never see her home or friends or her father ever again because of some spat that this man had with her Step mother. It wasn't fair! Then on top of that he was telling her that he intended to make her his bride and he didn't give a rat's ass if she didn't like it or not. Her brother actually wasn't her brother at all but rather a child of the goblin king whom he now expected her to call Jareth and treat as her own son. IT WASN'T FAIR!

She was only seventeen, and it felt like her life was slipping from her at an alarming rate. She cried until she lost the strength of her arms and laid face-down on the stone floor, her only relief being the coolness of the hard stones against her heated skin. Her hair spread out around her head, creating a curtain between herself and her surroundings. The sounds of her sobbing echoed in her ears. What was she supposed to do? She'd never heard of something like this ever happening to anybody in real life. Girls were free to choose their own husbands, they were not kidnapped by goblin kings because their stepmothers were runaways. She wasn't being rewarded, she was being punished. Punished for something she didn't do. "I-it's n-not fair!" she choked out between sobs.

She felt a firm hand on her shoulder blade and her body stilled under the touch as fear crept into her sorrow. She continued to cry as she couldn't stop the tears, but she wasn't crying as hard or as loud, her attention split between her misery and Jareth. His hand lifted from her shoulder and she could feel it as his fingers raked over her hair softly and slowly. His voice was quiet, right next to her ear when he spoke again. "Hush Sarah, it is alright," he cooed. "I know you must be confused and a little overwhelmed with all of this, it is a lot to process."

What the hell, he was comforting her? He had just told her that she was to marry him and he didn't care if she didn't want to and now he was comforting her for it? Her body flinched involuntarily when his strong hands gripped her shoulders, pulling her up from the floor so that he could slip his arm in underneath her ribcage. She fought the impulses screaming at her to fight because she was sure no good would come of it as he shifted her around till she was sitting between his legs with her back pressed against his lean chest. She could feel now that his armor was smooth as leather but made of something a bit more solid and it encased her as he molded himself against her back, he was effectively making her feel trapped in every sense of the word.

He rested his cheek against the back of her skull and she cringed when his lips kissed the back of her ear. "Think on it Sarah, and give me your answer after you've had a chance to rest and take it all in a bit."

He was insane. She wasn't going to want him any more than she did now just because she got some sleep. She reached up to wipe some of her tears away but they just kept falling, soaking her fingers and cheeks. Jareth nudged her back and she gladly moved away from him so he could have room to get up. She wasn't full out crying anymore, but the tears were still falling. Jareth stood before her and offered her his hand. Sarah glanced at it before turning away, not wanting to get up yet because she wasn't sure for one that her legs would hold her right now and two, she didn't want to go anywhere with him.

Jareth scowled down at her before moving to her side and scooping her up off the floor into his arms before she could protest. "You really think acting like a child is going to make your situation better?" he sneered as he carried her out of the room.

She didn't look at him and she certainly didn't try to hang onto his neck as he carried her. She was fairly certain that if he dropped her she would at least take solace in the fact that he was no longer touching her. He carried her down a flight of stairs, which was just crazy in itself because judging from the view the windows provided they were getting further and further away from the ground. There was a short hall at the bottom… top… she had no clue, which led to a large painting of an empty mirror at the end. On one side of the hall was a single door, and then there were two more on the other side.

Jareth carried her to the closer of the two doors and glanced down at her. "Either you hang onto my neck so I may open the door or I will drop your head onto the stones." His voice was sharp to show he was annoyed with her refusal to touch him at all.

Sarah reached up and gripped his neck because she had a feeling he really would let her head drop if she didn't, even though she really didn't want to. She compromised with herself by continuing to not look at him, but straight ahead at the door. Jareth's arm dropped out from behind her shoulders and he reached out to insert a key into the lock, clicking it free and then turning the handle.

The door swung open to reveal a lavish room decorated in deep blues and glittering gold. The floor was darkened wood and the only rug was a very soft looking enormous fur that had been dyed (she assumed) to be dark blue in color that fanned out underneath the enormous bed that took up a good quarter of the large space. Dark blue velvet drapes created four corners of a canopy that hung down from the ceiling to the floor at each corner of the bed. Between those were translucent curtains of gold that she was sure probably glittered in the sunlight. Beyond the bed she could see the same setup of heavy blue drapes pulled back so that she could see the outline of French glass doors that led out to a balcony concealed under more golden curtains. The sun was just starting to rise, creeping into the room through the golden material.

There were a set of doors located to her right and she looked up at Jareth in question as he set her down on her feet. He pointed over to the two doors "The one with the golden knob leads to a washroom and the one with the silver knob leads into what will be your room once it is done," he explained, gesturing towards the bed then to indicate that now was not the time to go exploring.

"Where am I now?" she asked, looking around the room some more.

"My room," was his simple answer.

She didn't want to sleep in that bed. She was exhausted and the bed looked extremely comfy and soft. Her body was feeling heavier to hold up at the very sight of it but still she did not want to sleep there. She didn't want to chance sleep at all if this was Jareth's personal room. She could only stand there and stare like the bed was a snake waiting to bite her as Jareth stepped past her and pulled the golden curtain back for her. Never mind, the bed was merely the lair because the snake was staring back at her impatiently as she continued to just stare.

"You needn't look so worried," he sneered at her, "I wont be joining you, I have work yet. If you don't get some sleep soon though I will be sure to put you there myself. I wont have you over exhausting yourself so you can continue to be so cross with me."

Did he honestly believe she was cross with him because she was simply tired?! She wanted to slap some sense into his thick head but didn't feel she had the strength for it. She didn't want to be manhandled again though so she made her way over to the bed, keeping on her jeans and all as she paused just outside of his reach. To climb in would put her right next to him. She crept forward slowly, only to scream when he reached out and seized her shoulder, shoving her past him and through the curtains onto the bed. He dropped the curtain behind her and gave her one last annoyed sneer before he turned and stomped out of the room, muttering to himself about how silly she was acting.

Sarah rubbed her shoulder but in truth it didn't hurt. It was her chest that hurt more than anything and she rubbed the spot over her heart like that would help with the pain. She shifted around on the bed, only to comprehend that truly it was extremely comfortable and soft underneath her. Even the blue and gold speckled comforter felt like it was stuffed with goose-down. She let out a sigh and thought about shimmying out of her jeans to get comfortable, only to decide to leave them on when she laid back and noticed that there was a mirror the size of the mattress staring down at her from the ceiling.

She wanted to cry all over again.

X

Karen clutched her chest in light of the pain that caused it to feel like her ribcage was shrinking around her heart. She had thought she had escaped him for good when she had found her way over to the Aboveground, but she obviously had been wrong. Roger had called the police over to the house immediately upon finding her sobbing in the living room with both of the children missing. She sat back in her seat next to Roger at the police station across the desk from one of the sheriffs. She had been sitting here for the last couple hours trying to explain what had happened without sounding crazy. The police were a waste of time, a comfort measure for Roger really. They would never be able to find her children, and even if the local police department pulled a sideways miracle out of their asses and found them in the Underground Jareth would never give them up. This was silly and pointless and it was keeping her from finding out how she could really get her and Roger's children back. She needed to get home.

Instead she was stuck here making up stories to try to save everyone a lot of wasted time and effort. Roger hadn't known the truth about Jareth and she didn't know if she should tell him now. Well, certainly not now while they were in the middle of the police department in front of Sheriff Franklin.

"So you're saying that you woke up to get a drink, your stepdaughter was out in the hall and then you went downstairs and into the kitchen for your drink."

She nodded and turned to Roger, "You remember Sarah had startled me in the hall don't you darling," she sniffed.

Roger opened his mouth to answer but the Sheriff jumped in before then. "Now you sa after you went downstairs you heard the door open and close and you went to investigate but saw no one. Concerned, you went upstairs to check on your son and found he was missing and then found that your daughter was also missing. You then cried and your husband woke up to find you crying in the living room. He called us," Sheriff Franklin looked up from the notepad he had been reading off from. "And here we are, that about right?"

Karen nodded her head and dabbed at her tears with the Kleenex she had been given earlier. "Yes officer, I don't know what happened."

The sheriff scowled at her, obviously thinking she was leaving something out. She only cared so much though, her son had been stolen and this was keeping her from going out there and getting him back, and Roger's girl. Jareth was going against the rules by coming to their world uninvited and steeling two human children that were not wished away. Toby was his son, but there was no way he had any proof of that before he had come to take him. He had no claim at all over Sarah though.

He wasn't going to get away with this. She leaned back in her seat as Franklin asked her another question about what she had seen. She prayed that they both stayed safe till she could get home and contact the counsel.


	3. Chapter 3

Note to all readers: I would like to let it be known now that there is an M rating on this for a reason. This work will get dark and disturbing. There is going to be violence and foul language at best, and at worst rape and abuse (most all between Jareth and Sarah, none involving Toby!). If you find these subjects to be extremely reproachable you are correct in that aspect, but if you can not handle that sort of subject matter than this is about where you should leave off in this story.

Beta reader for this chapter is the lovely Shibari Senpai, so you have her to thank for the quick update.

X

Jareth couldn't help but feel elated at the way things were shaping up. Quite possibly this was the best day in his entire life, and after having lived for so long that was saying a lot. His son was home and safe, right where he belonged. Jareth wasn't going to ever let him be stolen away again. He tried to keep from openly grinning as he made his way down the halls but, he still couldn't keep the smile from his face. He barely noticed when he was joined in the hall by his personal attendant, who looked like he had been searching all over the castle for him.

"There you are," the male sighed, just about dropping his folders on the floor as he shuffled them. "I've been looking for you, I have all the papers we will need with me because I thought you might want to leave immediately."

Jareth's attendant, Mavid, was the only other one that Jareth kept in this castle that was also of the fae race. He had grown up alongside the male as companions since before he could remember and without a doubt Mavid was indeed his oldest of friends.

Mavid was a tad shorter than Jareth, and although he carried almost no fat on him like most fae, he wasn't as thinly built but had a more pronounced muscle about him that had come from the advanced fighting classes he had been put through that allowed him to also serve as Jareth's guard when needed. His hair was cut short at the back, hardly half an inch, but long black strands were left to hang down to his chest in the front. His face was more angular than pointed, and his eyes were a match for the deep blue colour of the vest he was wearing over a plain black tunic. In fact, Jareth noticed that the vest was the only colour he was wearing since his pants and boots were black as well. The tattoo he bore on the nape of his neck that marked him as a servant to the royal family, was in plain view like always. "I've had our rides prepared for us in case you didn't want to travel there by magic," he continued, "And I have just sent out for a wet nurse and a regular nurse to be transferred to here to see to the needs of your son."

Jareth nodded his head as he continued to walk. "Keep the wet nurse, but send word we will not need the regular nurse seeing as I have decided to take on another wife that will provide my son with sufficient care. You can also cancel –"

Jareth paused when he realized he was suddenly talking to himself - Mavid had stopped in his tracks a couple paces back. He turned to see the stunned look on his friends face and couldn't help it when the grin broke through. He had known this would be a shock to his companion before he had even said it, taking a small joy in the reaction. "So surprised Mavid?"

Mavid nodded, a frown creeping onto his face. "I am very surprised Jareth, I didn't even know you had anyone in mind."

Jareth shrugged. "I didn't want to say anything till I had discussed with the counsel and they had approved it."

"May I ask who?"

"The stepdaughter of my ex-wife, Sarah, she was the one who ran through my labyrinth you remember. I brought her back at the same time that I retrieved my son. She already proved herself capable of being a fit mother figure for my son to have, as well as a fitting wife and queen as far as I'm concerned. By the way, I need to you get me a marriage license by tonight." He turned, ready to continue walking, but still Mavid didn't move. As much as he knew he would need to answer the many questions his friend probably had to this news, there were a lot of other things he needed to see to yet.

"Carrie's stepdaughter agreed to marry you?" Mavid asked in disbelief and Jareth knew the males mind was probably reeling in his head at all this startling news. Although Jareth shared almost all his goals and ambitions with Mavid, the fascination and feelings that had formed within him for the spunky young mortal were something he had kept very personal till he had at last had her.

Jareth shrugged again. "Not yet, but it's not like she had a choice in the matter."

Mavid didn't say a single word, and he didn't have to for Jareth to know that he greatly disapproved of this. That look on his face alone made Jareth want to start yelling at him, it always did. It's not like this was the way that Jareth wanted to go about it either but she had refused his earlier attempts on her, this was the only way now as far as he was concerned. He didn't want some nurse raising his child. Toby –er, Little Jareth, deserved the very best. A mother was the very best for him, and Sarah was the best choice for the job. There was nothing he would deny his only son, a good stable family wasn't going to be first on that list. Little Jareth deserved this.

And honestly, he deserved this too. He wanted Sarah so badly that when he was around her, it was all he could do to not touch her, hold her, and tell her how much he wanted to please her. If only she would accept him as her king and husband; he would spend every day making sure she felt loved and wanted for nothing, like he had with his first wife, and like he had done with Carrie once upon a time, before she had cost him everything he had ever wanted and cast him off like trash.

Sarah was so different from his previous wives, who had all had about the same soft dreaminess about them that he found appealing in women. They had liked to play pretend too, but they had always played the roles of the beautiful princesses who sat in a tower waiting for their knights to come and save them from their lives. Sarah liked to play the hero, going around doing good deeds and rescuing babies in her stories. She had so much spirit and bravery, enough to match his own and he found that extremely intoxicating about her.

He wasn't about to let Mavid's unspoken objection ruin this for him. "Don't you dare deride me on this matter Mavid, I have already made my decision and it would be too late for her to return to her world anyway."

"Not if the counsel allowed it…" Mavid said in perhaps a slightly softer voice.

Jareth smirked at that. "They have no reason to do so, and after Sarah is officially my wife they will have no right to do so either." Jareth turned again and resumed his stride. This time Mavid followed.

"You can also cancel our transportation, I'm not going yet."

Mavid looked up in surprise again but kept walking. "You're not?"

Jareth shook his head. "I have another matter to attend to before I meet once more with the counsel, they can wait till later tonight." Jareth turned his gaze to Mavid. "Make sure you get that license."

"May I ask what the other matter is?"

"I should write a letter to my parents for one, if they found out that I got married once more after the fact… well that, is a reaming I would like to avoid."

Mavid nodded intently. "As would I."

Mavid had been to Jareth growing up what was referred to customarily as a 'whipping boy', in the oldest sense of the phrase. He had been paired up with Jareth as a companion since early childhood, taken in by the royal family from the lower-class. He had gone through all the same tutoring sessions, tailor fittings and physicals alongside Jareth growing up. The outcome was, that it was Mavid's duty to act as Jareth's adviser, and sometimes as his enforcer.

The term 'whipping boy', was in play because it was custom among all aristocratic families that, as children, if Jareth had misbehaved and gotten caught, it was Mavid that had taken the whipping for it. Being aristocratic, it would have been something of a crime for Jareth's skin to have been marred in any way; he had been there to watch and cry for his friend every time a new scar had befallen his back. This was simply a normal practice for all members of the aristocracy, and had been accepted by all.

Jareth glanced over at his companion, "I doubt they would indeed try to have you whipped for not stopping me from putting this all into motion." It had been an extremely long time since Mavid had previously been scarred for one of Jareth's mistakes - not that Jareth hadn't made mistakes, but his parents could no longer order Mavid to be punished any more than they could order Jareth about anymore.

Mavid shook his head. "Somehow I'm not entirely sure of that."

X

Karen waited impatiently on pins and needles for some word from the counsel. She had summoned one of their messengers almost an hour ago and had told him of what Jareth had done, and that she needed to be allowed transportation to them at once to try to sort this out. Surely they wouldn't stand for this. She couldn't imagine what Sarah was going through right now.

After they had been allowed to leave the station, Roger had harassed her the same way that the officer had done for the entire ride home, up until she had burst into mad tears and had holed herself up in the downstairs bathroom. She had spent the last hour sitting on top of the closed toilet seat waiting for any word. It hadn't been hard to burst into tears for Roger, her emotions even rawer than her nerves at this point. Breaking down once again had been easy - it was stopping that had proved to be difficult. Even now, tears were still sliding down her cheeks. The wait was just short of unbearable.

She almost jumped out of her skin when the messenger returned, filling the space in her bathroom that, a split second ago had been completely void. The fae servant turned to her, not giving any attention to his surroundings. "The counsel has been made aware of your argument, and has arranged for a meeting to be had between you and your former husband, Jareth the king of the Labyrinth and Goblin City, at nine o'clock Aboveground time."

"But that's hours away!" Karen whined, feeling another tear trailing down her cheek.

"It is the counsel's will Miss, shall I meet you back here to escort you?"

There would be no arguing with him. She was a little surprised to hear him refer to Jareth as her ex-husband, and could only assume that Jareth had had their marriage annulled, since she had never signed anything and had never looked back after escaping the Underground. Karen could do nothing else but nod her head. She was sure that Jareth would never harm his son - it was Sarah who she was worried about. He had taken her to get revenge on Roger, but what could that fiend possibly plan to do with her?

X

"So, for those reasons, I am sending word to you now and wish to let you know that I will be unreachable for at least the next two days. As always, with love, your son Jareth - How does that sound?" Jareth asked, looking up from the papers he was shuffling through as Mavid wrote down the letter he would be sending to his parents.

Mavid glanced up at him in a way that wasn't entirely friendly. "Like a whipping."

Jareth fought the glare he wanted to shoot right back at Mavid, continuing to rifle through his folders once more. "Make sure that is sent out immediately. Where is that sign-off sheet?" He tossed a folder across his desk in disgust.

With the same glare ever present on Mavid's face, the male reached over and picked up the folder that Jareth had just tossed, flipping the thing open and pulling out the document that was needed before pointedly thrusting it back towards him. Jareth grabbed it from his just as pointedly. "Keep trying my patience Mavid, and I'll take a lash to you myself."

They both knew it was an empty threat. He would find a different way to punish his friend if he had to. Mavid ignored Jareth as he placed the letter he had just written out into a crystal of his own and went to the study's window, chucking it out with the utmost trust that it would find its own way to the intended readers. He sat back down in his seat across from Jareth, flipping back through his own papers to keep from giving Jareth any more foul looks.

Jareth went back to his own form which would allow for the building of a new wall around the fountains. He signed off on it and passed it back across the desk to Mavid, who accepted it with neutrality.

Both males jumped back from the desk as quickly and as a far as they could when a black crystal came flying through the window and slammed into the surface with enough force to almost deafen them both from the sudden and extremely loud BANG. Papers flew everywhere and Mavid let out a slur of curses as he collected himself. Jareth had a few choice words bubbling up his own throat as he steadied himself and glared daggers at the black crystal that had bowed in the center of his desk where it had hit. "What happened?!" he demanded angrily.

Mavid picked it up and flipped it over in his hands, causing the crystal to vanish and a piece of parchment to appear. Jareth immediately recognized the seal on it and fought not to let out a childish groan. "It's from your father," Mavid grumbled. He broke the seal and his eyes skimmed over the letter. "He is requesting to see you right away… imagine that."

Jareth scowled at that. "I told him in my letter that I will be unreachable for the next two days, just set that aside for now and I'll get back to it."

"It mentions at the bottom here that if you don't show up in the next five minutes, he will be sending another black crystal after you, and will continue to do so every respective five minutes after that till you –excuse me while I quote, 'get your royal arse up and in my office so that I may yell at you properly'." Mavid looked up at Jareth with a knowing expression, "It sounds like Hamold personally wrote this one."

Jareth rolled his eyes, he didn't have time for this nonsense. All the same, it didn't look like he had a choice.

Mavid nodded as if he was agreeing with Jareth's train of thought. "Shall I accompany you?"

Jareth shook his head as he pinched the bridge of his nose, trying to stave off the headache that threatened him. "That will not be necessary or prudent. You stay here and work on some things, see whether those dwarfs have Sarah's room done at some point, but make sure you don't disturb her, she is staying in my room. I will try to be back as soon as possible, but if it takes too long make sure that my son gets fed and changed, he is also currently resting."

Mavid nodded, "The wet nurse should arrive within the hour for him."

Jareth nodded and took one last look around his now trashed study. "See if you can get someone to help you with this-" he sighed before taking flight, not as an owl, but through the astral plains to his father's castle as a faster means of transportation. He was thankful now that he had not bothered to change out of his armor, he was starting to think it might be needed to protect him. He appeared in the middle of his father's study just as he had expected. His father was in the middle of heated conversation with his own attendant (Jareth could guess what about) but immediately stopped when his son arrived.

His father was like him in the way that he was tall, thinly built and carried an aristocratic aura about him at all times. That was about where the similarities ended. His black hair was kept no longer than the very top of his neck, and was combed back flat against his head in a very defined widow's peak, two grey streaks running back through it on the sides of his head from old age. His thin lips were drawn so tight that at the moment they looked little more than like a shadow and his eyes were piercing gunmetal grey in colour. The high collar of his ruby-red cloak rose up to be level with the top of his head, the framing coming out of the fabric in a design that looked like spikes to seem very imposing. Jareth could make out even from behind the desk, that the rest of his father's outfit was a collection of the same red colour with hard looking silver linings. His father's grey stare fell on him like daggers but he showed no fear, which was easy enough to do since he wasn't afraid. He was a full grown fae with his own kingdom and subjects who could damn well make his own choices. His father held no power over him.

"Erib, wait outside while I speak with my son," his father ordered his assistant, his voice gruff.

Erib was to his father what Mavid was to him, a constant companion and trusted friend, Jareth couldn't stand the fae. Erib's hair was already completely white with age and tied back into a stern looking bun on the crown of his head. Despite being a servant, the male was arrogant with the knowledge of being the highest servant of them all and had constantly assumed that that gave him the right to also look down on Jareth as he had grown up. He wore simple white robes that made Jareth think of ghosts almost all the time, now was no exception. He nodded to the king and stepped past Jareth and out the door, but not before shooting him a disapproving look with his dark brown eyes.

Once the door was closed his father wasted no time in getting to business. "What is the meaning of this!?" he shouted at Jareth, holding up the letter Mavid had sent.

Jareth rolled his eyes. "Exactly what you think it means, I've recently found out that, without a doubt I truly am a father and I have reclaimed my child. I have also decided to take on a new bride for the purpose of helping me to raise him."

His father's eyes narrowed. "Yes I gathered that, I also noticed the mention that this is a human girl."

Jareth's back straightened a little. "She is."

Hamold, king of the fae and ruler of the Devine City, slammed his fist down on his desk. "Always with these human girls! Your first wife was of the fae and she was good to you! Take on another fae wife if you must."

Jareth nodded his head, he would never deny that Lavender had been a good wife to him. She had died young though and he had only been with her for such a short time, barely a decade. It had also turned out that she had been barren, as many females of the fae were, and he had craved a child enough after that to decide that it would be prudent to marry human next.

It had been a good union at first, but Carrie had stolen their only babe away from him. In the end, it had been Sarah who had quite literally delivered a son to him and for that he was forever grateful to her - She had earned the right to be his queen.

Jareth's gaze was level with his father's when he answered. "I will have this human girl for my bride father, and nobody's objections are going to change that." Not even hers, he thought to himself.

His father let out a deflating sigh and eased back in his chair, "It's going to look-"

"I do not give a care how it looks father," Jareth informed the older fae calmly.

The male's temper flared up again as he struck his desk once more. "That's obvious!" he shouted.

Jareth reined in his own temper at being spoken to in such a manner, keeping himself calm through no less than a miracle. "Is mother aware of this?" Jareth asked, wondering how she took the news. Probably fainted. This whole thing had been just what he had been trying to avoid by writing the letter, he had never expected his father to turn black crystals on him.

"She doesn't know and I have no intention of telling her," his father muttered, "If I had my way, no one would ever find out."

"I will make this girl my bride, and I do not intend to shut neither her nor my son away from the world. I need to be getting back to my kingdom father, and if you insist on sending any more black crystals my way, I must warn you that you will receive one back with a bill inside it for anything else they ruin - as it is I'm going to need to replace a desk." He didn't wait for his father to go on, figuring he had been 'properly yelled at' enough for one day. He ran to the window and leaped out, turning into his owl form and taking flight through the skies on his way back to the castle. Somewhere behind him he could hear his father shouting out the window, but he didn't give a fairy's arse.

Flying this way wasn't as fast as the astral plane, but it would give him time to cool off and relax a tad bit before he would have to face the world again. Right now, that was just what he needed.

X

"He's absolutely gorgeous isn't he? The spitting image!" Jareth beamed with pride as he held his son in his arms, the babe smiled back up at him and he could just about feel his heart melt.

Mavid watched the babe in Jareth's hold and couldn't help but smirk a little. "He certainly has your ears."

Jareth grinned and bounced his son against his hip, he had returned to the castle by the time the wet nurse had finished his son's feeding. Since the child was awake anyway he had had no qualms about getting to hold and spend a little time with him before he was given a bath and put back down to bed. He hadn't gotten any time before when he had first arrived, simply placing the child in his crib before attending to Sarah. The babe continued to smile up at him and coo approvingly as he reached a hand up. Jareth placed two of his gloved fingers in the child's hand, grinning like a fool as his fingers were squeezed. "You're so happy to finally be with your father aren't you?" Jareth cooed.

Mavid rolled his eyes at the display but continued to smirk. "You're starting to sound more like a mother than a father to me personally."

Jareth paid his comment little mind as he kissed the top of his son's soft head. "Speaking of mothers, I suppose I should pay Sarah another visit." he murmured against his son's blond curls.

"You'll want this I'm sure," Mavid said, handing Jareth a crystal.

"Thank you," Jareth simply said, storing the crystal away for later and placing another kiss on his son's head before passing him off to Mavid. He watched as Mavid shifted the child around in a sure hold, only once Jareth was satisfied that he wasn't about to drop him did he move for the exit.

"Jareth," Mavid called out.

Jareth spun back around, afraid at first that it had to do with the baby.

"You sure about this? The girl I mean? It will be harder for you too if she is not willing."

Jareth couldn't help but smirk in appreciation for his friend's concern but didn't answer as he closed the door to the nursery behind him. He was very sure. Sarah was meant to belong to him. He turned towards the door to his room right across the hall. She would accept him, and if not, she would come to at least appreciate him in time. What other choice did she have?

X

The Labyrinth was a wonder, a true marvel that, had the Aboveground known of its existence, it may have deemed it worthy of being the eighth wonder of the world. Even in this world, it surely had to still be a wonder. The goblin city surrounding was spread out in a rag-tag collection of streets and buildings; buildings were made up of stones and anything else that could be tacked, taped or sewn together to the point where it looked more like a city for patchwork dolls. It was the shapes that made them look anything close to foreboding, constructions covered with sharp angles, dangerous looking spikes rising up and casting shadows everywhere so it was obvious something other than dolls dwelled there. It was like something straight out of a Tim Burton movie. A large stone wall surrounded the town as well as the castle, like it was reaching out to hold it there rather than guard it.

Beyond that, the wall was surrounded with large heaps of trash and litter showing that, while the goblins did have some standards when it came to living in filth, they were also very lazy. Some of the mounds were large enough that they could almost be considered hills, and every couple of hours it seemed like another goblin was tossing a wrapper or unwanted item over the wall, for the collectors to find and add to the piles on their backs as they scoured the junk lands. Beyond those were forests, trees lush and green, enormous thanks to the extra fertilizer they were offered as they too took from the junk lands.

After that was the majesty of it all, a labyrinth that stretched out in all directions just about as far as the eye could see. From over top, one could watch for hours as walls moved and new ones were built to replace the moving ones till, they too, would eventually grow tired of their spots and move. Thousands of creatures and beings moved amongst all the confusion as they had made their homes among those walls, finding themselves caught in the middle of the labyrinth and unable to find their ways out they had adapted to it, some even moved with great ease.

Had she really made it all the way through that?

Sarah looked out at the world around her from the balcony outside Jareth's room. The sun was starting to sink off in the distance; she watched as the labyrinth walls threw off shadows that, slowly, but unstoppably crept closer and closer to the castle. She had awoken a little bit ago, going to the bathroom and then out to the balcony with the purpose of getting her bearings and perhaps even finding a way out of here. Looking at the labyrinth now, it seemed dismal that she would get through it again, assuming she were even able to get to the ground without breaking her neck. Sarah looked down over the edge of the balcony. She had found out by stepping out that Jareth's room was located in a tower, high up in it for that matter. A fall would most certainly kill her. She didn't want to die, but she had really hoped to find a way out of here before Jareth could come back for her answer.

Sarah jumped slightly when she thought she heard the door inside open and close and held her breath while she listened.

"Sarah?" Jareth's voice bellowed from inside.

Her heart sank and she contemplated not answering but, he would eventually find her out here. Then he would probably get mad, and she didn't want him mad if she was to try to reason with him once more. "I'm out here," she said, her voice coming out soft enough that she was sure he wouldn't have heard her.

He seemed to have though, as he came to the balcony doors. Sarah wanted to curl up and hide from that intense gaze of his as he looked her over. He was no longer wearing that black armor that clung to his body, but had seemed to have changed into a loose-fitting silver shirt with ruffles at the cuffs of the sleeves, and more ruffles that trailed down the front of his chest and into the V that his black leather vest created. His pants were black and tight, disappearing into thigh-high black boots. She could make out the chain from his medallion wrapping around the back of his neck and dipping down beneath the ruffles of his shirt. He had an odd way of looking spectacular and inviting, where in the same get up others would have likely just looked silly. He moved his hand up to rest on the doorframe, she could see as the ruffles fell back that his hands were hidden under black gloves. "Do you feel better now?" he asked, his tone careful and low like he was afraid of spooking her.

Hell no! Sarah cleared her throat, "Um, yes." Jareth looked her over again and nodded his head like he was agreeing with her or something, before stepping out onto the balcony.

"What time is it?" Sarah asked, she had been wondering since she had woken up but had failed to find any clocks within Jareth's room or the bathroom, the door to the hall had also been locked against her, as had the door to what Jareth had said would be her own room.

Jareth raised an eyebrow at her question, like he thought her silly for asking that or something. "It is almost nightfall."

"Yes but what time is it?" she asked again.

"Sarah the Labyrinth does not keep time, very few places in the Underground do. The days and seasons pass, years go by, but there is no real concept of time like you are used to in the Aboveground. That's why it was so easy to manipulate and reorder when you were in my labyrinth, time was whatever I wanted it to be."

She was confused, but nodded her head anyway like she understood what he had just said. Jareth stepped closer to her and she instinctively stepped back, his brows knitted into a frown and she couldn't help but want to kick herself. While she had been looking over the labyrinth she had decided to once more try to convince him to let her and her brother go. It wouldn't work if he was cross with her. "Have you thought about my offer?" he asked her, his voice holding a sharper edge to it.

She forced herself to take a deep breath and calm down. "Jareth, I'm too young to marry you," she said, hoping that if she passed blame on to something outside either of their control that just maybe he would stand to be reasoned with. If nothing else, it might buy her some time.

His eyebrow did that mocking arch again. "Oh really?"

She nodded her head firmly. "In my world, in the USA girls aren't allowed to be married until they are twenty-one unless they have their parent's permission," she said, lying through her teeth. "I was raised to believe very firmly and unswayably that I would not mentally be fit for marriage until I was much closer to that age like all the other women I grew up around. Seventeen is just considered much too young for this sort of thing - men have gone to jail for touching girls my age because it's considered statutory rape." At least that last part was true, "It's as frowned on to marry a seventeen year old as it is to marry a five year old."

Jareth's eyes went wide in surprise as he stared at her. "Really?"

She tried not to smile at the thought that this was actually working and nodded her head again.

Jareth stepped closer to her but now she wasn't as afraid. His eyes were still wide as his lifted his hand up, running his fingertips over his bottom lip like he was rethinking his decision to force her to marry him. All of a sudden a look of relief passed over his face and Sarah no longer had to fight the urge to smile - that urge was gone as he himself smiled. "I was worried for a moment there Sarah, truly," he sighed, "Then, I remembered something..." He leaned in closer to her and lowered his voice to a whisper. "We are in my world."

Sarah let out a yell of surprise as she felt his hands grip her shoulders and shove her hard. She fell back against the stone ledge that ran around the side of the balcony, pain shot up her back as she hit it. Jareth was on her in half a second, gripping the back of her head by her hair and raising his free hand up in the air. His grip on her hair didn't hurt, but it certainly kept her in place. "You think me so foolish? Tell me lies like that again and I will strike you right on the mouth for it. Do you understand me?"

Sarah's heart was going a mile a minute, besides being uncomfortable, her back hurt from where she had hit the stone wall. Jareth's eyes were cruel and full of threats as he held himself above her, ready to strike if she tried her luck with him much more. Sarah nodded her head and tried to answer but found her voice to be gone, instead a low and pitiful moan escaped her lips and she hated herself for it.

Jareth let go of her hair and brought his hand down, still looming over her. Out of nowhere he let out a long sigh and sat back on his haunches, pinching the bridge of his nose between his fingers. Sarah almost could have sworn she heard him mutter one or two numbers under his breath before looking up at her again, not nearly as pissed off but still far from pleased. "I apologize for that, I don't like being lied to and I won't stand for it Sarah." he hissed.

She simply nodded her head again, still very much afraid of this man –this creature in front of her that seemed capable of anything. It had been a stupid lie and she knew it, but she was willing to try anything at this point. She still wasn't ruling anything out if there was even a slim chance of getting her freedom; more lying, crying, begging… even fighting wasn't ruled out in her survivalist mind.

Jareth let out another sigh and held his hand out to her, "It just has been a very emotional day I suppose."

She didn't want to take his hand, she was afraid of doing so. The fact that she was more afraid of what would happen if she refused was what caused her to place her hand in his without a single protest. He gripped her hand in his strong palm and she allowed him to pull her back up to her feet, never taking her eyes off him for her distrust.

"I wonder," he pondered out loud, "Would you like to go and see Little Jareth?"

He had to mean Toby. She did want that, very much. She wanted to make sure he was still safe, other than that, if she was going to try to escape soon she wanted to know where he was being kept. "Y-yes," she answered, finding her voice once more.

Jareth nodded and led her off the balcony, letting go of her hand so he could pull the French doors closed once again. He turned a lock on them, but Sarah took comfort in the fact that it was just a normal switch that she herself would be free to lock and unlock. In a room full of locked doors there was comfort in that. She jumped slightly when Jareth gripped her hand again, he didn't seem to notice as he led her across the room and out into the hall with the mirror painting. He took her to the door across the hall and turned the handle, revealing that it wasn't locked.

The room inside was about half the size of his own, but still large enough that it could have been an efficiency apartment. The walls were all painted a very light blue and there was a mural that covered the ceiling, painted to make it look like the night sky with stars twinkling down on the room. There was a lavishly carved wooden crib placed against one of the walls and Sarah noted that it was full of white fluffy looking sheets and pillows, even a stuffed animal polar bear with a blue ribbon tied around his throat in a little bowtie. A changing table was set up next to that, in the middle of the floor was a cleared space with a large and super soft looking white rug sitting on the floor. Sarah noticed that the only thing touching the rug was a huge blue box filled with toys, guessing that that meant the rug was a marked play area. Her attention was drawn to the sound of water splashing over against the wall and looked to see a man and a woman standing next to a sink full of water where Toby was currently having a bath. Upon their entry, the two had turned to see who had entered. They both bowed to Jareth before the female lifted Toby up from the water and wrapped him up in a fuzzy yellow towel and patted him dry.

The female was willowy in her thinness, making it look like her arms would snap off at Toby's weight, holding him easily nonetheless. Her hair was pale blonde and kept in a braid that hung down to her waist. Sarah could see, even from the distance they were at, that her eyes were also a pale green colour. Everything about her was pale. Even her simple pink top was washed out, only made more obviously so by the white skirt that hung down to her ankles. For some reason, Sarah didn't even like to admit though she couldn't help but notice that, the female had rather large breasts for such a small frame.

Assisting her in her task was a man with pitch-black hair, cut short in the back and long in the front. His deep blue eyes fixed on her, not in the way of checking her out or anything, but more as though sizing her up. It took all her reserve and Jareth's constant grip on her hand for her to not run over and snatch Toby away from the two strangers.

"Jareth?" the male questioned as he rose from his bow. His eyes swept over Sarah in further question but she paid him no mind, too intent on her brother who saw her and cooed.

"She wanted to see the child, I am allowing it." Jareth released her hand and that was all she needed to rush over to Toby.

The female held him out in front of her for Sarah to take, she couldn't help but smile when she had her brother safely back in her arms. She could accept that he wasn't really her brother in any way, but there was no way of denying that she still loved him like he was her true family. Toby was a weight in her arms that steadied her in a way that made the world feel as though it wasn't spinning out of control for a second. Toby let out an adorable sigh as he relaxed in her arms, she couldn't help but copy it.

"He obviously loves you," the male next to her said with some approval.

She looked at him for the first real time since entering the room, and was stunned at how handsome the male actually was. He was downright stunning in the same kind of way that Jareth was. This meant he was obviously also a fae and not to be trusted. He dipped his head to her in a slight bow, using a towel to dry the water off of his forearms.

"This is Mavid, my trusted assistant and friend," Jareth spoke up, introducing her to the other faes as he stepped up beside her. Sarah tried not to act as tense as she felt at having him come close to her. "And this is Tallia, she is here as a wet-nurse for the babe."

That would explain the boobs.

"You may take your leave, both of you." Jareth spoke up from behind her. Mavid looked back at the king before nodding his head obediently, ushering Tallia with him out the door. Sarah didn't want to look back at Jareth, as though it would spoil her reunion with Toby if she did. Toby looked up at her and cooed once more before smiling. Sarah smiled back down at him.

"Mavid is right," Jareth's voice spoke right next to her ear making her heart skip a beat, as she somehow miraculously kept from jumping out of her skin, probably because you required a heartbeat to be able to jump anywhere. "He really does love you,"

Sarah was hardly comforted by his words as his hand crept around her waist, she clutched Toby tighter, as if she believed Jareth would make to grab him from her. "Just like you love him," he continued. Sarah said nothing as she tried to calm down her racing heart. "I don't want you to stop loving him Sarah, any more than I want to separate him from you. I wouldn't dream of doing any such thing. You can love my son as much as you wish and I would be very pleased for it."

Sarah knew where he was going with this, bringing Toby up to hug him against her chest like she used to do with her stuffed animals when she was scared as a child. Jareth moved around to stand in front of her, allowing his hand to slide from her waist along her back to her other side. It sent another shiver up her spine and he wrapped his other arm around her so that he was holding both her and Toby in his arms. The only thing keeping him from getting much too close being Toby caught in between their bodies. Jareth reached his hand up to stroke Toby's wet hair before placing it back on Sarah's side. "Would it be so bad to love me too?" he asked, his voice hushed like he almost couldn't bear to ask it.

There was certain vulnerability in his mismatched eyes that made Sarah really dread any reaction he would have to her answer. She opted to look away, turning her head down so her nose was against Toby's head. Since it hadn't been a rejection Jareth pressed on, "You gave me the world when you brought my son back to me by making that wish, all I want to do is give you a fitting gift in exchange. Let me give you this world Sarah- let me make you a queen. A world for a world, isn't that fair?"

She considered it, God help her but she actually considered it. Would it be so bad to accept his offer of her own violation? He could be caring and sweet at times, she had seen it. It also looked like her brother was being well cared for. He was also attractive, wanted to and could offer her all her fairytale dreams…all she had to do was love him in return. 'Fear me, love me, do as I say' wasn't that what he had stated as his conditions? But that was just the problem- she didn't love him. She feared him too much to ever love him, and could never for a second consider trusting him. Even if Toby did belong here with his father, she didn't.

The labyrinth had been a great adventure for her, but that adventure was over. That story had an ending, it wasn't supposed to go on. She needed to go home. She wanted to go home. She didn't even realize she was shaking her head 'no' until she glanced up and saw Jareth scowling down at her. The look he was giving her was what really sealed the deal- it was a pure and simple reminder that Jareth's moods were as unpredictable and sudden as a lighting storm, and could be just as dangerous. She could not live for hundreds of years like she just had in the last twenty four hours or so, walking on eggshells and living in constant fear of rousing his wrath. She would go mad.

Jareth took Toby carefully but suddenly from her grasp, powerless to do anything but watch as he kissed the babe's cheeks and placed him in his crib, where Toby immediately began to cry when he realized he wasn't being held any longer. Jareth marched back over to Sarah and without a word, grabbed her hand in a painful grip and half led, half dragged her out of the nursery and back into the hall. She scarcely fought him as she was too terrified to hardly think straight. He slammed the door behind her and locked it, the sound deafening in her ears as she watched him and waited for the worst. It was obvious that he was livid with her. It wasn't too late, she could probably take it back if she wanted to, tell him she was sorry and she would indeed agree to marry him. Her dignity denied her that chance though.

Jareth turned to her and she wanted to run, but there was no place for her in here to run to. She considered the bathroom very briefly, but if he didn't catch her first (which she doubted) there was no way to lock him out. She held back a startled scream when Jareth gripped her shoulders in his hands, hard enough to leave bruises. "Say you choose me," he demanded, his voice as low and dangerous as a viper ready to strike, "Say you will be my wife and I'll forgive everything."

An extremely tempting offer at the moment. She continued to bite her tongue, not willing to say such a thing but also not wanting to say anything that would anger him further. She just couldn't win for losing, though her silence only seemed to rile him up more. His grip tightened on her arms till she was forced to cry out, shaking head to toe in fear. Was he going to kill her? That lone thought caused her to panic, a stupid move, but she was beyond reasonable thinking as she started to struggle despite the fact that his nails were biting into her skin till she bled in his determination to hold onto her. The added pain just caused her to freak out even more and she powered through the pain to attempt to use her arms, to push him away from her, kicking at his leg with her foot. "Let me go!" she screamed as loudly as she could.

His grip slipped on one of her arms and a smacking sound rang through the room as she struck him in the face. Jareth let out his own cry of pain then and released her other arm to stroke his reddening cheek. A new and truly terrifying fear gripped Sarah's heart as she backed away from him against the wall, practically choking on the fear that filled her throat- she couldn't have screamed if she had wanted to… "J-Jareth, I'm s-so sor-

WHAM!

The world turned black and spun around her head for a second and from out of nowhere Sarah found herself laying face first on the ground. After a couple terrifying seconds of seeing nothing but blackness, even though her eyes were open, her vision returned to her. The pain was right on its heels, creeping up on her at first and then taking a full out charge at her till her head was screaming in pain from the mighty blow Jareth had dealt her. She hadn't even seen it coming. Was a hit supposed to hurt this much? Terrified, and sure that she now had a concussion, she gripped her head in her hands so it couldn't split apart like an eggshell, which it felt like it was about to do. She swore she could hear her blood rushing in her ears.

Jareth's voice was much louder than that as he stood over her and shouted down at her. "You wench! How dare you strike me like that! I could in all good conscious have you killed for such a thing."

She wanted him to shut up and leave her alone, her head was hurting more and more as she laid there, his voice filtered through her skull like a saw blade. She didn't give him any response as she continued to lay there and will the pain to go away. Jareth reached down and gripped her hair in his hand, yanking her up forcefully. Pain shot from her skull to her entire body in such an intense rush that her stomach clenched up- hard, Sarah could do nothing to stop the vomit from leaving her mouth to fall all over the wooden floor. Jareth instantly let go of her and stumbled back, bringing his arm to cover his mouth and nose in disgust before he could help himself.

Sarah started spitting on the floor to get the foul taste out of her mouth, a little more spit wouldn't matter at this point. Tears were running like streams down her eyes and she was simply thankful that she hadn't passed out as her body shuddered. Jareth must have hit her too hard, in the wrong spot or something… She was no longer lying on the floor though, having stayed on her hands and knees from when Jareth had released her. She took comfort in the fact that she was able to stay in this position. People didn't die on their hands and knees. Jareth disappeared through a door, she wasn't sure which one, just that his presence was no longer in the room. When she heard the sound of water running she realized that he was in the bathroom.

Sarah stayed on her hands and knees, listening to the water and concentrating on calming down her breathing. Jareth quickly came back out of the bathroom with the water still running behind him, a washcloth in his hand. He was careful as he approached Sarah, his hand coming to rest on her shoulder before applying just the slightest pressure to indicate he wanted her to try to sit back on her legs. Sarah complied, in her position she wasn't able to argue, allowing him to bring the washcloth to her face. It was wet, cold and felt like heaven as he pressed it against her still throbbing head and she reached up to hold it there herself. "That's good, Sarah," he encouraged her in a soft voice. If anyone were to walk in on them at that moment they would have never guessed that it had been Jareth who had hit her.

"Can you stand?" he asked her.

She didn't answer, unsure of the answer herself as she moved the washcloth, already growing warm from her hot face to wipe off her mouth. She noticed that there was a stain of red on the white towel from where it had been pressed to her temple- she was bleeding. She hoped it wasn't deep. Jareth carefully and slowly lifted her up, carrying her gingerly into the washroom where the tub was filling with water. He bent and placed her carefully on the rug next to it, pulling Sarah's loafers and socks from her feet. He reached up and started unbuttoning her shirt, it was then that Sarah realized that he was going to completely undress her. For some reason she had just pieced together that a tub full of water didn't require taking off one's clothes.

She immediately started moving around again, trying uselessly to bat his hands away from her blouse. Jareth caught her hands easily and held them without any strain as the world spun around her again. "Shhh, shhhh… be still Sarah," he implored her.

He stroked her face and arms till she fell still but, he wasn't what caused her to as much as the world spinning around her did. She didn't have the energy to fight back and she could feel tears escape her at the dawning of her own helplessness. If she fought she would pass out and if she passed out she couldn't fight. She cried while she hoped and prayed he did not intend to force himself on her.

Jareth went back to work on her blouse, his nimble fingers freeing all the buttons within a minute, he had her lean forward so he could reach around to unclasp her bra as well. Sarah shook all over as the air hit her bare chest, if Jareth thought anything of it he was polite enough to not say so. He then unfastened her jeans and Sarah waited patiently while he moved her around just enough to remove her underwear and pants together. She was completely bare to him now and at his mercy. Jareth scooped her up in his arms again and gently lowered her into the water of the tub, making sure that she was braced against the side so her head wouldn't slip under as he let her go. The sleeves of his silver shirt were soaked as he pulled them up out of the water, he undid the clasps of his vest and then the buttons of his own shirt, removing both and throwing them on the marble floor somewhere behind him. His gloves followed. He grabbed a new towel from next to the sink and rolled it up, propping it behind Sarah's head like a pillow.

Sarah paid no mind to the fact that she could now see his hands and chest bare for the first time, but she did notice with satisfaction that his cheek was still red and starting to look swollen. She could almost make out her finger marks among all that red… Jareth got up from the floor and went over to the sink, pumping the faucet so more water ran onto another washcloth. He returned to her side once it was soaked and placed it against her forehead, the cold water running off of it and down her face like tears of relief. He perched on the edge of the tub and she instinctively covered her chest with her arms, not that she would be able to stop him from doing anything. He simply lifted the edge of her washrag to peer at her head. "Not deep at all, you've already stopped bleeding." he murmured, like he wasn't the one to cause it.

She hated him, he would be soft with her when he wanted something, but if he didn't get his way he would become horrible and evil to her. After he was done unleashing his temper on her, the same hands that harmed her would caress and care for her. Was this sick cycle what he referred to as love? She hated him.

Even though she was sure it would upset him again, she couldn't help but turn her head away from him. "Please just leave me alone…" she sobbed.

Jareth was still next to her for a few seconds, she didn't have the strength or courage to look over at him. When he spoke his voice was still soft. "Alright Sarah, I will leave you be, but you must do a few things for me first. Are you listening?"

Sarah nodded her head slightly. Just freaking leave already!

"I don't want to leave you alone in your condition, will you allow me to send in the wet-nurse to keep an eye on you?"

She nodded her head, anything to get him to leave. "Alright but I also need your hand for a moment, your writing hand."

With an irritated sigh she moved her right hand out of the water and to the edge of the tub, she didn't even look over as Jareth dried it off with a towel and placed a small stick in her fingers. "Sign this." She looked over and saw that she was holding a pen, he pulled a crystal out of thin air and turned it over in his hands, producing a piece of crisp white paper for her. He pointed towards the bottom line, "Sign here and I'll leave you alone for the entire night- Tallia can even make sure you get to bed and I will take up lodgings elsewhere."

Boy did he know how to bargain. Sarah signed on the line and dropped the pen on the floor without a care, turning her aching head away once again as he stood up and quickly left the room to fetch the wet-nurse.

X

Jareth said nothing to Mavid as they walked down the stairs of the bottomless pit, located at the borders of the Sidhe lands, to meet with the counsel. Carrie was trying to appeal to the counsel to get back her son and daughter- she wasn't going to win if Jareth had any say at all in the matter. He could feel Mavid glancing at him out of the corner of his eye, but refused to give him an invitation to speak by meeting his stare. He kept thinking about Sarah, worried about her sitting in that tub with only a wet-nurse to watch over her. He hadn't meant to hit her at all, but when she had hit him he had just reacted accordingly, he certainly hadn't meant to hit her so hard. Mavid had been with the wet-nurse when Jareth had entered the nursery to find them once more watching over his son so Mavid knew about her condition, and knowing Jareth, could guess at what had happened. He had also come into the doorway long enough to see the mess Sarah had left on the floor. Jareth shook off the shame that was threatening to creep into his head and take up nest there. She had struck him first damn it, why should he feel guilty? Besides, hadn't he nursed her afterwards? He would have continued to too if it hadn't been for this damn meeting he had to attend. Since she had asked him to leave and he needed to be here to keep from being forced to send her back with Carrie, he had conceded to go.

If there was indeed a bottom to the bottomless pit, he didn't know, the counsel being located on a platform dug into the side of the hole to create a cavern of sorts. Carrie was already there, wearing a pair of flannel pants and a matching button up shirt that looked like sleepwear. Jareth had not been allotted time to change, since his shirt had still been very wet he had simply worn his vest over his torso, matching well with Mavid now. He could not hold back his glare upon seeing Carrie and she returned it, her eyes full of hatred at she stared back at him. The difference was that her eyes held something else as well- they held fear.

X

Karen watched, anger boiling in her stomach and throat, as Jareth descended the stairs glaring daggers at her. She mustered up just enough hatred to return the look but she knew, if it weren't for the fact that she was standing right in front of the counsel meaning Jareth couldn't do anything to her for it, she wouldn't have dared. That look was still enough to make her heart speed up and her legs want to start running. She wasn't surprised to see Mavid trailing along behind him and wanted to spit in her distaste, if there was one male she couldn't stand compared to Jareth, it was Mavid.

The counsel was made up of only three members; Tavin, Shayia and Dominix. All were fae and all cared only about rules and laws, nothing about right and wrong. There was a difference.

Tavin was the one to speak first once everyone was gather before them, "State your claims against Jareth, the goblin king."

Karen straightened her spine and spoke in a clear and precise voice, "I accuse him of breaking into Aboveground when it is forbidden by your own counsel and steeling away two children, my son and stepdaughter."

She tensed when both Jareth and Mavid laughed at this. Dominix raised his head and fixed her with a stern glare, "We have already been made aware of the actions that took place regarding your claims. He did not break into the Aboveground, the lack of destruction in both worlds proves that he was summoned there by one Sarah Marie Williams. She wished to have one Tobias Matthew Williams taken away into Jareth's possession."

That was impossible, how would she even know about Jareth to do something like that?

Dominix continued, "Proof was submitted to us that Mr. Williams was indeed legitimate issue of Jareth, and so you had no right to remove him from his father in the first place. Secondly, this counsel saw fit to grant Jareth's wishes of granting him sole custody on the grounds of child neglect and abuse."

"Abuse?" her head was spinning, they had agreed to this.

Shayia leaned forward in her seat, "Kidnapping a child and transferring him to the Aboveground without consent, showing complete and utter disregard for said child's tendencies and abilities toward magic, neglecting to nurture child's magical abilities, disregarding child's magical heritage, and making it possible for child to lose all magical abilities permanently by cutting off all magic ties at a developing age- this is all not mentioning that this child is of royal blood..."

Her mouth was dragging on the floor, she couldn't believe what she was hearing- they thought she was an unfit mother and had stripped her of all her rights to her own son behind her own back! This couldn't be happening. She looked over at Jareth like he could explain it better to her. He simply shook his head back and forth while he tsk-tsked her.

"In note on your accusation of kidnapping your stepdaughter, she had come with the baby to this world of her own accord where she then ran his labyrinth and accepted his offer of marriage."

There were so many things wrong with that sentence she didn't even know where to start, and worse, she couldn't start. Her voice had left her as she continued to stand there, gaping like a fish as they informed her of all this. That had to be a lie though, Sarah had been snatched right out of her house along with her child, and there was no doubt about it - and she ran the labyrinth? How could she have!? It would take a person years to solve that monster, the labyrinth was the most effective and dangerous cage she had ever had the misfortune of seeing. But the last bit had left the sourest taste in her mouth- Marriage? It had never dawned on Karen that Jareth meant to marry her stepdaughter. And Sarah would surely never accept such an outrageous offer…

Karen found her voice again, but it was shaky, "S-he would n-never marry-

"Really?" Jareth asked, his brow arching up mockingly. He held up his hand and Mavid pulled a piece of paper from a folder, handing it to Jareth who then handed it over to the counsel, "Then why would she sign a marriage license?"

Karen watched in stunned silence as the counsel looked over the document. Tavin held the document up for her to see, "Can you verify that this is the female's signature?" he asked her.

Karen took slow and painful steps forward, feeling her heart sink along with her hope as she looked over the document. It was Sarah's signature all right, she had a tell-tale way of adding a swoosh on both ends of her A's. How could this all be true though? Why would Sarah do something like this? Karen just knew she wouldn't- she couldn't… Karen had spent the better part of two decades chained to Jareth's side- she knew from experience that he was slick enough that he could have found a way to make the pope sign his name on that document if he had wanted. She looked over at Jareth in full suspicion and her eyes narrowed at what she saw there. "What's wrong with your cheek Jareth?" she growled out.

His hand instinctively moved to his red cheek, wincing when he came into contact with it. "I wasn't paying attention and walked into a door." he shrugged.

"It looks like a slap to me." she hissed, knowing full well what slaps looked like by now.

Jareth grinned at her then, "Oh, it was a fighter, but it's hardly more than splinters now." he joked.

The counsel all spoke to each other in hushed voices, paying attention to the documents they were going over. They made no bother to listen to Jareth and Carrie's exchange, and likely wouldn't have cared even if they had been.

Karen felt a shiver run down her back at what he had said, knowing there was probably more truth to those words than she wanted to admit to herself. If she knew Jareth, Sarah had fought back. She had tried that too when the abuse had first started- She had learned quickly not to, just like she was sure Sarah was learning now too. Her heart broke for her step daughter. This was all her fault. Karen turned back towards the counsel, "You can't let him keep Sarah, he's abusing her."

Dominix fixed her with a steady gaze, "Jareth has already made us aware of several instances where the girl proved to be a capable and nurturing care-giver, which would be best suited for helping in the raising of his son. He has also submitted proof that the marriage between him and the female is legal and now binding, the court cannot break apart a man and his wife. Furthermore, not only do you have no proof in your allegations of abuse, but this document shows that in any case the female in question has agreed to be his wife. You will be shown back to the Aboveground immediately after this hearing, and shall remain there for the rest of your human life. Toby and Sarah will stay with Jareth in the Labyrinth for the rest of their time. Decision made." he said, dismissing her.

Karen couldn't believe it as the messenger who had brought her to the underground, stepped over to lead her out again. She turned to fix both Jareth and Mavid with lethal glares. "You're a soulless bastard Jareth! I'm not going to just let you have them. I swear before I die I will help both Sarah and my son escape you, even if it means I have to kill you to do so!"


	4. Chapter 4

I want to reiterate that this is fiction and thus no one is actually hurt or suffering here, but make no mistake that while reading stories with dark themes are provoking to read and an innocent way to "feed our inner demons" as Stephen King puts it, you should never mistake them for being acceptable or desirable in real life. I would like to believe that much is already understood by everyone. Warning: This chapter contains more themes of abuse and rape etc so stop reading this story here if these themes are too much for you. I thank everyone for they're support thus far.

Beta for this chapter is the lovely The Art of Suicide.

Sarah didn't want to get out of bed. She didn't want to do anything after what had happened last night. She hadn't even wanted to wake up entirely, but that had been outside of her control when Tallia had checked back in with her that morning and shaken her awake so that her injuries could be checked up on. After Jareth left last night the wet nurse had come in, finished washing her up, helped her wash her hair, and then finally climb into bed. Sarah thought she would never get to sleep, but had drifted off almost instantly. She was exhausted.

"Truly your injuries aren't bad, Miss," Tallia informed her, removing the bandage from Sarah's forehead. "It could have been much worse if he had struck you in the face rather than the head."

Sarah fixed her with a sour stare. "Aren't I lucky?" she hissed bitterly.

Tallia had the decency to blush at her own foolishness. "Forgive me miss, I didn't mean to make it sound like that. I was merely trying to point out that in a way you were lucky that you got off so lightly and that is the truth, Ma'am." She gave Sarah a slight bow like she was trying to make up for the impropriety of her words with good behavior. "For striking his majesty like you told me you had anyone else would have met with a bad end. Your scar is already healing and shall leave no blemish. How do you feel?"

Wasn't that the question? Hopeless. Dejected. Terrorized. Humiliated. But she knew what the female was referring to. "Alright, I guess. My back is still a little sore and I have a faint headache."

Tallia nodded and handed Sarah the glass of water that had been sitting on the little table next to the massive bed. "Then I think you should try to stay in bed for the better part of the morning and not overexert yourself."

"Do you think it's right that he hit me?" Sarah blurted out of nowhere, setting the glass back down on the stand without taking as much as a sip. Tallia looked up at her, completely taken by surprise, but Sarah didn't care. She felt like she was going crazy here. Last night she had been terrorized by Jareth's inability to control his anger. She knew that both fae she had seen last night with Toby knew what had happened to her because she could hear Jareth summarizing it to them right before he left from inside the bathroom. She had since told Tallia in detail what had happened, but nothing seemed to be getting done about it- other than the messes being cleaned up, herself included. In her world, the police would have been called and Jareth would have been sent to jail while everyone told her how they wished her the best and that Jareth deserved to rot for what he had done to her.

What Jareth said last night rang through her head.

'We are in my world.'

Obviously, things were very different here than in the Aboveground, but could they really be so different that it was okay for a man to abuse a woman like that? She felt like people were going to ignore the fact that she had been brutalized and that they were trying to lead by example in saying that she should do the same. She just wanted to hear someone say out loud that it was wrong what had been done to her, for her own sanity if nothing else.

"Miss, it is not my place-"

"I don't care about that. Just tell me what you honestly think about the whole thing and I promise you won't get in trouble for it. It can be just between us." Sarah wouldn't tell on her to Jareth if that was what she was worried about. Tallia was his servant so she could see how the woman would fear reprimand from him if word got back that she thought what he did was wrong. Sarah would never tell.

Tallia was silent for what felt like a long while before she finally nodded her head. "Very well, Miss. I carry the opinion that it may not be right, but it is within his rights to have reprimanded you for your behavior unto him."

Sarah just stared at her, shaken to the core by her ludicrous words.

Tallia continued. "You were very much out of order to slap the king at all, and even if he wasn't the king as your husband he would have as much right to chastise you for acting up as one's own father would."

She had never heard of such backward thinking since the sixteenth century. Did they really think that way? To think of abusing other people as simply administering punishment, and then only those of a lower rank could, in fact, be punished? It was insane.

Sarah frowned as something else Tallia had said registered to her. "But he's not my husband. He's nothing but my jailer."

Tallia said nothing as she got up from Sarah's side and got ready to leave. "I must go and feed the little master now. I'll be sure to have food sent in for you as well," she said, rather dismissively for a servant, before walking out, shutting and locking the door behind her.

Sarah suddenly found herself struggling to hold back tears again at the unfairness of it all. You don't blame the victim. You just don't. But that's what was going on here, wasn't it? Well, she wasn't in the wrong and no matter what anyone said she wasn't going to let herself think for an instant that she was. She felt she would go mad if she did. She looked up at the mirror that stared back down at her from the ceiling over the bed. She still looked like herself, save for the slight bump from her swollen temple. She still had her long dark hair, the same color that it had always been, and her dusty green eyes still stared back at her. Yet, she couldn't help but feel miles away from herself. She felt like a piece of her was missing, an important piece.

Sarah looked over when she heard the locks click free and the knob turn, her mouth already watering for how hungry she was. She hadn't eaten anything since she'd had that peach, and that hadn't gone well. She forced herself to sit up in bed, only for her heart to sink when the door opened and Jareth came into the room. He was the last person she wanted to see. She didn't want to send him away or anything, though, not after she got a look at the silver tray of food he carried with him. It held her favorite breakfast from the Aboveground; stacks of blueberry pancakes with butter and syrup and sausage links on the side served with milk. Her stomach growled in raw anticipation and she hoped that Jareth didn't hear it.

She clutched the blanket closer to her. After her bath, Tallia had simply wrapped her in a towel and had her climb into bed. All she had under the sheets was a towel that had unwrapped during the night and she didn't want Jareth to get a chance at a second look. He hadn't moved from inside the door, though. He just stood there with the tray, staring at her after the door swung closed again behind him.

She stared back at him, unwilling to make the first move. She still vividly remembered the pain from last night and fell still to avoid unwittingly setting off another one of Jareth's rages.

His face was calm, almost peaceful looking, now. His gaze was still sharp but it wasn't as intense and unstable as before. He looked more focused now like a weight had been lifted off of him. It was greatly unnerving.

"I brought breakfast," Jareth stated, holding the tray up like he had to prove it to her. Sarah clutched the covers tighter to her belly as it gave another growl. This time Jareth must have heard it because he smiled at her knowingly. "I thought you'd be hungry by now, surely."

He came into the room and Sarah continued to stare as he approached her. So, he was just going to pretend last night had never happened? If he thought giving her food was going to make her agree to any further attempts he had at making her his wife he could just take the food back. As much as she wanted it and needed it, she just would go without if he planned to use it against her. That went for anything he planned to use against her. After what he had done to her last night she would never ever in a hundred thous- make that a trillion billion years, just to be safe- agree to marry him. She watched him apprehensively as he came to stand beside the bed, holding the tray out to her.

She watched his eyes, trying to find something there to tell her if this was a trap or not. Perhaps the food was poisoned. After a long minute, she tucked the blanket in under her arms so that it wouldn't slip and took the tray from him, setting the somewhat heavy load carefully down on her lap. Jareth sat down on the side of the bed now that his arms were free and reached down to unzip the back of his thigh-highs.

Sarah tensed up immediately. If he noticed he ignored her, kicking off first one boot and then the other with a sigh. He then reached for his stomach and undid the two buttons that held the soft leather vest closed on his torso, shucking that onto the floor as well. Sarah couldn't help but notice that he was just teetering between being thin and lean, his skin smooth, pale, and utterly perfect- like alabaster. His chest was flat like his stomach but broad like his back. His shoulders looked impossibly smooth but strong for his slender frame and for a very brief second she almost wanted to touch one. A light dusting of pale hairs graced his chest where the medallion he always seemed to wear hung off his neck. As terrible as he was in every other way to her, even Sarah couldn't deny that he was quite beautiful.

The only thing he wore now was his tight black pants and they left little to the imagination. Sarah considered bolting from the bed but the tray on her lap, in a way, trapped her. It also protected her, though. He wouldn't be able to really pull anything with the large food-laden tray on her lap. He looked back at her over his shoulder. "I thought you may not be up to having breakfast in the dining hall and decided I would dine with you here."

He wasn't asking permission or demanding, rather stating a fact.

Sarah held her tongue. As much as she wasn't a fan of that idea, she didn't want to lose her first chance at food in days over a silly argument like not wanting him to join her. She instead took the syrup from the tray and started pouring it over her stack of pancakes. If he wanted to ignore the way he had treated her, then she could just ignore him. As much as possible, anyway.

Jareth surprised her when he reached out and gripped the jug the syrup had been brought in, tipping it back up and stopping the flow. "Good lords, Sarah, at least allow me to get my share before you drown them all in that liquid sugar."

She pulled the jug back from him, not wanting him to touch it nor take it from her. Well, at least if he planned to eat some of it the food surely wasn't poisoned this time. The last thing she wanted was to be trapped in another floating bubble with him. Not that her present situation was much better.

Jareth took one of the spare plates that had been set on the tray and loaded on his helping, leaving her the lion's share. When she was sure he wasn't going to help himself to more, she continued to pour the syrup onto her pancakes till there was no part of the cake uncovered by the copper goo. She focused on a sausage link while she allowed the syrup time to soak into her pancakes, looking up from her serving only when Jareth exhaled sharply. He was using his fork and knife to cut his own sausage into bite-size pieces and the syrup on his own pancakes sat perfectly in the center of them so that not a drop leaked over onto his plate. "Your manners are very… untreated," he commented, his brow raised in its mocking arch again.

Sarah almost blushed at the thought that she had simply used her fingers to retrieve and devour her sausage and a bit to spread her syrup around her pancake. She didn't blush, though, when she reminded herself sharply that she didn't give a flying rat's ass what the fiend thought. She blatantly and unashamedly used her fingers again to eat her other sausage. She automatically went to lick the grease from her fingers out of habit but froze at the dark look Jareth was giving her. That intense look had returned to his eyes and he was entirely focused on her mouth and fingers. She dropped her hand quickly and used a napkin to clean them up instead. He stared at her a moment longer like that before returning to his own meal, meticulously cutting a perfect square out of his pancake and popping it into his mouth without getting a drop of syrup on his lips.

Sarah picked up her own fork, ignoring the provided knife as she used the side of the fork itself to cut her pancake into pieces before scooping them up and into her mouth. The food was excellent, really. It all melted in her mouth and made her hungry for more. She ate till her plate was clean and finished all her milk by the time Jareth was starting to begin on his last pancake. She had been ravenous. She leaned back against the headboard, completely satisfied with her full tummy. She watched as Jareth continued to cut up his food in that well-cultured way of his that had probably been beaten into him early on as a child- figuratively speaking, of course. Now that she had been properly fed, she was ready for him to pick up and go whenever he, too, was done.

Somehow, she felt it wouldn't be that simple though.

X

Jareth tried to keep his mind on his breakfast but it was so damn hard with Sarah there. She was beautiful in the mornings, with her hair messed from sleep and her lids lowered in a sexy kind of seductress fashion at least half the time. Even her skin looked softer and had a fresher glow to it and he knew damn well that under his blanket that she clung to was so much more of it to be seen and touched. But then on top of that, she had kept licking her lips through breakfast because of the syrup she would get on them. His attention was held captive every time she sighed in content pleasure at a good breakfast, and then there had been that time in the beginning when she'd started to lick her fingers… how women couldn't notice the subtle seductions that played alongside food, he had no clue. He had spent the better part of his own meal keeping himself from simply lunging at her. He wanted to kiss her so badly. Her lips were soft and swollen now from eating and he was sure that she would probably taste sweet from all that syrup. He crossed his leg to hide the evidence of his longing as he finished his meal.

He looked over to see her looking down at her plate like she had forgotten he was even still there, dipping her finger into the leftover syrup in a gesture that he was sure she had probably done a thousand times without any thought whatsoever. She brought the syrup that clung to her skin up to her mouth and quickly sucked it before it could run down to her hand. Jareth fell completely still next to her as he watched this.

Good gods, he wanted to kiss her, but he wanted to do other things to her, too, with just as much and perhaps even more ferocity. He had been concentrated on her wellbeing at the time, but last night as he had placed her in the tub he had seen all of her body completely exposed to him. He remembered all too well how gorgeous she was; her woman's body nearly fully formed with a thin waist, wider hips, and long thin legs that went all the way up to her smooth and high arse. Her chest had been finely shaped and neither small nor big. Her arms had been just like her legs, thin and long and just begging to be spread wide. His head spun with all the images and possibilities that assaulted him. Ever present at the head of all these thoughts was the knowledge that since she was now legally and inarguably his wife he would be fully allowed to. It was his right to.

Jareth set his plate down on the tray in her lap and took the tray in his hands, moving it to the stand next to the bed so it would be out of the way. When he turned back to her, Sarah was noticeably more apprehensive. Her eyes were entirely too cruel to him as they pegged him with automatic fear and mistrust. The way she looked at him sometimes made him go mad with the unfairness of it. He could only assume that she was still dwelling on last night. He could remember that Karen would do that, too, whenever he had been forced to have her behavior reprimanded. She would be the one to do something indecent and then hold it against him when he acted accordingly. He had never punished her unless she had done something that merited being chastised, and soon enough he hoped that Sarah would see he was the same with her. Since she wasn't here of her own accord it would be harder on both of them for her to accept her position and start acting accordingly. But, that was to be expected. Jareth had owned wild Pegasus ponies before and they had eventually all bent to his will, pulling his carriages and carrying himself and his attendants. Sarah would eventually bend to his will as well. They would see if her will was indeed stronger than his in the end. He was willing to bet his entire kingdom that it wasn't.

He looked at the slight bump on her forehead from where he had struck her last night. Truly he had not meant to hit her that hard, but he had been completely taken by surprise when she had struck him. He had never been struck before in his life by any living creature. He knew what pain was, of course. There was no way that growing up a child didn't fall down or run into things here and there, but being slapped purposefully by someone you knew was a completely different and somewhat betraying pain. It hit both the skin and the heart. He was sure that Sarah was probably aware of that now and wouldn't try it again.

"Well?" she snapped at him, bringing his attention back to her and away from his own thoughts. "I asked you if you expected me to marry you because you got me food?" she repeated herself.

He honestly hadn't noticed she had said anything. He couldn't help but smirk in mirth when he realized what she had asked him, though. She didn't realize then? Jareth shook his head to try to clear his genuine amusement. "Actually, I don't expect that at all."

She seemed a little surprised and relieved, a look he might have taken personally if he wasn't so entertained with this whole little conversation. "What did you come here for then?"

"I've brought you a gift," he smiled. Sarah tensed again and he couldn't help but chuckle at her silly behavior. "It's not a crystal this time Sarah. It's so much better than that." He reached into his pocket and pulled out his gift to her. It was a ring, the shape of it the same as his king's medallion, but on a smaller scale with his family's symbol carved onto the center. This was meant for a queen to wear, the Queen of the Labyrinth. Now that she was his wife it was hers. He held it out between them and Sarah looked at it apprehensively. When he had presented his last two wives with this he remembered that they had been elated and had both wept and rushed into his arms. Sarah regarded the ring like it was a rabid dog, stark recognition of what it was on her face mixed with building fear that this could be the end for her. Annoyed by her reaction to his gift, Jareth reached out and seized her hand, pulling it roughly to him so she was forced to sit up. She gripped the blanket even tighter to her with her other hand as he held her right hand's middle finger out and slipped it onto her before she could find her bearings to fight back against him. The ring tightened around her finger instantly and only once it had found its place did he release her hand.

Sarah brought her hand back to her and looked at the ring once more with contempt before trying to remove it. She wouldn't succeed, not unless she broke her finger. Nevertheless, Jareth reached out and smacked her left hand to get her to stop. "You won't be able to remove it like that, Sarah. With how you treat me you should be happy I gift you with anything at all," he added on as an afterthought.

"What the hell is this?" she asked, alarm present in her voice.

"You know what it is, Sarah. It is a queen's signet. It allows all to recognize you as Queen of the Labyrinth and goblin city, and as my wife."

"I will never be your wife!" she snapped at him fiercely and he had to reign in his temper. He reminded himself that it would be foolish to try to argue a point he had already won.

"You are my wife, Sarah," he finally told her.

"No, I'm not!" she shouted back at him.

"Funny how you are the only one who thinks that, considering it was you that signed our marriage license."

She looked at him as if he had just sprouted another head. "What are you talking about? I didn't sign anything like that."

Jareth turned his hand once before a crystal appeared in it and then turned it the other way, dropping the document he produced into her lap. Her hands snatched it up and brought it close to her face as her eyes darted around it. He watched in completely still silence as her eyes slowly widened and realization mixed with the horror on her face. "You made me sign this last night… you didn't…"

She looked up at him then and the look on her face just about broke his heart. She looked at him like he had betrayed and violated her trust. Not that she had had any trust for him to do so with. "What's done is done, Sarah, and you are now my wife. The council has agreed to it."

"You never told me I was signing a marriage license!"

He smiled at her bitterly. "Come come now, Sarah. You're old enough to know that one doesn't sign anything without first reading it. I at no point tried to keep you from reading what you were signing." He couldn't help but smile wider. "Technically, last night was our wedding night."

Sarah continued to glare at him while she clutched the blankets to her. Gods he wanted to rip those covers from her and take in the feast of her body. "It doesn't count!" she hissed at him. "I wasn't in a right state of mind when I signed that. I was disoriented and barely conscious after you had beaten me." She wadded the document into a ball and threw it as far across the room as she could to better illustrate how little she thought of it. As if that would be the original and only copy.

Jareth raised his brow at her. "I didn't 'beat' you Sarah," he stated, "I reprimanded you for your behavior unto me. I seem to remember that it was you who struck me first."

"I hit you because I thought you were going to kill me! You were the first to get physical and I was scared out of my mind!" she confessed, all but shouting at him now.

"I would never kill you, Sarah. I love you too much to ever allow myself to lose you again. I admit that I was perhaps not entirely myself these last few days. But now that you are legally and undeniably my wife, all that worry and uncertainty I was laboring under is gone."

The glare she gave him would have rivaled anything he was able to pull off. "You don't love me. You love your pride and your ego and when I refused you I wounded them both. You may want me as your wife so you can soothe them, or possibly because you see something you can't have and can't accept that. I would even be willing to believe that maybe you were infatuated with me after I bested you at your own game and think you have much to gain from keeping me here with you, but you do not love me. You never have and never could."

He couldn't keep his anger down this time and he could guess from the way she drew back against the headboard that whatever look he was giving her now had indeed bested her previous glare. How dare she be so naïve to try to tell him what his own feelings were, to doubt his words and heart! It was beyond insulting. What would she know of love like this? All she had ever known was love for her family. She knew nothing about love that was shared between a man and woman but that didn't stop her impertinent tongue from trying to explain to him that she knew what he actually felt. She knew nothing!

He would show her that though.

X

Sarah wanted to run at the look he was giving her. It was filled with dark malice and his eyes were shades darker from it. She clutched the sheets so hard that her knuckles turned white. Jareth's voice was cold and low when he next spoke, like a winter breeze over her skin. "I will show you, Sarah. I will teach you what love is between a man and a woman."

Sarah couldn't hold back her scream as Jareth seized the comforter and tore it out of her grasp, leaving her chest exposed as she scrambled to get it back. He caught her easily and pulled her up against him. Shock radiated through Sarah as his lips crashed down on hers, kissing her with such force and strength that she was sure her lips would bruise. His tongue forced its way in and she couldn't think about anything else for a few moments as his stronger body held her firmly in place against his chest. His tongue both penetrated and explored her with slow but deliberate strokes and she couldn't stop herself from thinking that it was a promising tease for what would come if this progressed. She tried harder to pull away as her cheeks grew hot from embarrassment at the rush she felt between her legs.

He was actually very skillful at kissing, his lips sucking at hers every time his tongue would retract. Every move he made was slow and deliberately made to feel good to her, a testament to what sex with him would be like. Sarah brought her hands to his shoulders and pushed with all her might, only to scream again when he completely let go of her and she fell back against the bed. He was on her in an instant.

His hands seized her wrists and held them down on either side of her body as his bare chest came to rest against hers, his arousal pressed firmly against the groove between her thigh and womanhood. His lips found hers again and she broke off the kiss by turning her head away from him. He simply found her neck instead and sucked on the sensitive flesh there till she no longer knew if it felt really good or if it hurt. His hips started moving against her and she fought the tears that came to her eyes and blurred her vision. She didn't want this to be happening. He wasn't really about to rape her, was he? Could he be that cruel?

Everything was happening so fast and she wasn't able to keep up either mentally or physically. His body was a firm and unyielding weight on hers that kept her grounded while it caged her. She felt like she was floating –no make that falling. Like she was falling off a cliff to her doom and her world was spinning around her. It was all too much too fast.

"Jareth, please stop," Sarah cried in fear and desperation, trying to twist her wrists out of his grip. He tightened his hold on her till she cried out from it and continued to assault her neck as he moved her hands up over her head, crossing them and then switching his hold around so that he was able to hold both her arms and still have a free hand. She would have never guessed he possessed such strength to be able to hold her down so easily. Sarah cried out again when he cupped her naked breast in his hand, squeezing it to the point just short of being painful before letting up, then repeating the action. "Jareth, get off of me!" she shouted.

"Be silent," he snapped at her, moving back up to kiss her once more. His tongue and lips worked their magic on her again and her body quivered underneath his as another rush hit her. He smiled against her lips and she hated him for it. The hand that held her wrists let go of her and he brought it down to her other breast, performing the same squeeze and release method there as he was on the other. A deep and feral moan sounded from deep inside of him and Sarah shivered at the sound as he rubbed himself against her again, the only thing between her body and his being the thin pants he still wore.

She brought her free hands down to make another attempt at getting him off her, one pushing against his shoulder while the other seized his long hair to try to dislodge him from the kiss that was effectively numbing her mind. His hands both instantly clamped down on her chest and pain shot up and down her spine, as she cried out against his lips and tears slipped from her eyes. Jareth's gaze bore into hers as he continued to squeeze her outrageously tight. "Don't do that again," he warned her, his tone cold enough to freeze water. She let go of his hair and shoulder instantly and a microsecond later his grip on her chest eased way up. She didn't want him to ever do that again, it had hurt so much, so her hands fell useless at her sides as more tears fell back from her eyes into her hair.

He went back to his slow but steady thrusting against her leg as he moved down lower on her body till his head was level with her breasts. Sarah shivered as she watched him place a gentle kiss against one of her hardened nipples. "You have truly gorgeous breasts," he sighed before drawing it in between his lips and sucking on it. Sarah gasped before she could stop herself at the sensation, bringing her hands up to wipe away the tears that plagued her vision.

She had never done this sort of thing with anyone before. She'd had a boyfriend when she was sixteen who had kissed her and fondled her sometimes, but nothing like this. She could barely even call what they had done kissing after what Jareth had just done with her. She was aroused and wet for him, but she still didn't want to continue. This wasn't how she wanted to lose her virginity, being raped by an abusive male that had tricked her into marrying him. She didn't try to push him off her this time since now it wasn't merely his hands that had a hold of her chest but also his teeth. She tried pleading with him again.

"Jareth, please stop. I'm not ready for this to happen-"

She cut herself off with another loud gasp when Jareth's knee pushed its way between her legs and his hips made room between them so she couldn't close them again. The intimacy of this position brought his arousal right up against her and she felt pulses of lust in her groin cause her to grow even wetter. It was an entirely odd but not unpleasant sensation. With her legs spread open for him, Jareth reached down and ran his fingers over her, spreading open her lips to touch her most private of places. An odd noise like a cross between a groan and a gasp escaped him and he laid his head against her chest like he was trying to collect himself. "You are remarkably wet already, Sarah. I would say you are indeed ready for this."

Sarah let out a noise similar to the one Jareth had just made when she felt his fingers enter her, creating an intoxicating pressure to build in her as they stroked over her much in the way that his tongue had her mouth. His thumb found her clit and stroked over it wonderfully as his fingers pumped into her, preparing her for what was to come. She could barely think past all the sensations he was making her feel. "I'm not ready, though! My body may be but I'm not!" she insisted. "Jareth, I don't want this."

"I find that hard to believe," he grinned up at her as his fingers continued their stroking. He moved back to sit on his ankles between her legs, his eyes intense as he stared at her. The look he had now was full of dark promise and anticipation. It was the look a predator would give before launching an attack on its prey. Jareth brought his free hand to his pants and released a clasp on the front, pulling the fabric down to the curve of his knees before shifting around to remove them from his legs completely in a move that had to have taken a lot of practice since his other had had never for a second lost its momentum on her and he hadn't moved from his spot between her legs. Sarah stared with a virgin's curiosity and fear at the appendage between his thighs. It was long and firm looking, surrounded by curls of fine looking hair that led up to his navel.

At the realization that she was now at the point of no return, she panicked again. She pushed against the mattress with her heels and the palms of her hands to try and get away from him, but he simply took hold of her hips firmly in his hands and brought her body right back down to him in one easy pull. He laid his body out on top of her, his hands trapping her head in place so he could kiss her again. His shaft was now uncovered and nestled against the slit between her thighs, going back to that slow trusting movement that rubbed him right over her clit.

Before she could think of what to do next his hips pulled back and he reached down in between them. Sarah hoped and prayed that he was reconsidering, only to have those hopes smashed when he pushed into her body. He made it only an inch or so before she felt him pull back out and drive forward with more force. It hurt more than before when he had roughly handled her chest and she cried out against his lips from it. He pushed in again and the pain intensified as she felt him enter her till he was completely sheathed from tip to base. It continued to hurt and the pressure made her feel like she was about to be split in two even though he had stopped moving. "Sarah, calm down," he whispered to her comfortingly. "The worst part is over now. Calm down so your body can adjust to me."

She didn't want to. She couldn't calm down even if she did. She wanted him to pull out. It was hurting her to keep it inside. Jareth continued to stay in his position, but she could feel it as his body started to shake in pulsing waves. It seemed like every other second another shiver traveled through him and his eyes were closed tight, his head up like his neck muscles were drawn tight as well. "You feel so wonderful," he gasped out. He moved his hips against her slightly and Sarah winced at the feel.

His head dropped down to her shoulder and she felt his shoulders tense a second before his hips started moving again, causing him to retract and then push into her body again and again. She could see the mirror above them now and watched as Jareth's hips drove into her in a firm pulse that caused her to shiver. A wave of pleasure shot through her but disappeared soon after since her body was still very new to this. It didn't feel as bad now, but it was still far from pleasant as he continued to thrust into her. His hips were steadily picking up speed and she cried out when he gave her a particularly harder trust. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders in hopes of being able to keep herself at a certain distance from the full force of his thrusts. He must have thought she was just holding onto him though because his arms moved from her head to underneath her lower back, pulling her hips up at an angle that allowed him to drive in deeper. She cried out at the new sensation and let go of his shoulders, instantly wishing she hadn't when he moved up further and started to push roughly into her. Moans escaped his lips in a steady stream now and she knew he was getting close to something when his thrusts sped up to a pace so fast she could hardly breathe through her gasps.

"You are so damn tight," he panted, his voice strained. "I'm not going to be able to…" Jareth suddenly tensed up completely above her and his head kicked back as his body fell still. Sarah felt the oddest sensation yet as his very shaft pulsed inside her. A triumphant roar spilled out from his mouth suddenly and his hips started thrusting against her in quick short strokes before once again his body fell still and he collapsed on top of her, his chest heaving with his breaths and his body covered with a glossy sheen of sweat.

Sarah was stunned. Had that really just happened? It had been so surreal. She knew that girls her age and younger lost their virginities every day, but this seemed just too… unreal. The realization that she wasn't a virgin anymore struck her like a bolt of lightning and she suddenly wanted him off her right away so she could run into the bathroom and wash him off of her. He was literally all over her, even inside her. What if she got pregnant? All she could feel, see, and smell was him. She needed to get away from him. Sarah brought her hands up again and shoved against his chest as hard as she could.

He gave a sigh that sounded both tired and annoyed and moved off of her, rolling onto his side. She meant to get up right away but his arm was still snaked around her waist and when she tried to pull away he tightened his grip, pulling her back against his body to hold her. "Where are you going?" he smirked, looking very pleased with himself.

Thanks to the hold he had on her she wasn't going anywhere. She didn't give up though. She continued to pull against his hold. "I want to go to the bathroom!" she hissed.

He held on a second longer before his arm released her and she sprang up from the bed as quickly as she could, wanting to get as far away from him and that godforsaken bed as quickly as possible. She wanted to find a hole to hide in and never come back out after what had just happened. She figured the bathroom would work fine since there were no holes in the bedroom that she was aware of.

She could feel Jareth's fluids running down her thigh and quickly shut the door behind her, grabbing a washcloth and running it under water from the tub before doing her best to scrub herself free from him on her thighs and lips. She could still smell him on her skin though. That scent that she once used to think was so exotic and pleasant now made her want to tear her skin off. She placed the stopper in the large white tub and turned the water on, sitting with her feet in the warm liquid as she waited for it to fill. She was still shaking all over and her mind was blank. She was pretty sure that she was in shock.

She flinched when she heard the door open behind her and turned back to see Jareth standing in the doorway. He was still nude and her eyes immediately fixed on his cock for a split second, taking in both its flaccid position and the way it still glistened from her wetness made her shudder again at the reminder of what had just happened. He looked somewhere between angry and confused as he stared down at her. "What are you doing?"

Washing myself of any proof that you ever touched me. "Just taking a bath."

He entered the room, leaving the door open behind him. She could see the bed sitting there in the background and turned back to the water, listening to the rush of the pipes as the tub continued to fill up. She forced herself not to flinch when Jareth moved up to stand right behind her, leaning over her and reaching out to feel the water temperature. Seemingly satisfied with it, he pulled his hand back. "Would you mind if I joined you?" he asked from behind her, his tone holding a certain warning to it that dared her to tell him she didn't want him to.

I'd rather bathe in the river Styx. Sarah simply nodded her head.

X

Jareth wasn't a fool. He had hoped that she had simply needed to use the facilities but when he had heard the tub water running he had gone to investigate. It was easy enough to guess that she was resolved to wash herself of the sex they had just shared. She wanted him off of her. He wouldn't make it so easy for her. If she was going to insist on washing up he wasn't going to order her not to, but there was no reason not to join her. He would be all to happy to help her wash up, allowing him to touch her more and getting a point across to her that he was not so easy to simply remove.

Sarah sat rigidly on the side of the tub as though she was seriously rethinking her bath. He turned the water off himself when it was about full and stepped over the side into the hot water. Sarah kept her eyes off of him, a blush apparent on her cheeks. She did not move any further into the water. Jareth moved over to her and scooped her up from her seat before she could protest. She still yelped in surprise, though, and immediately tensed up like she had suddenly been struck with rigor mortis. He was careful about kneeling down in the water, trying very hard to not even chance slipping as he took a seat in the hot water and positioned Sarah in his lap. The tub was deep and circular, the water coming up to his collarbones and stopping just under Sarah's chest since she was positioned on top of him. She moved as if to get off of him but he tightened his hold and fixed her with a meaningful stare. She stared back into his eyes for a second and didn't try to move again. Satisfied that she would not, he reached over and gripped the soap in his hand, going to work cleaning her arms first.

She was still so soft and warm in his grasp. She smelled wonderful, too, like her normal scent of sun and honey and something that was also purely her, but there was also the faint smell of himself and sex on her, too, and that made him smile softly. She had enjoyed herself, for the most part, there was no denying that. He felt bad that she'd had to hurt during, but that was just a normal and unavoidable part of the process.

He still couldn't get over how tight she had been. Neither of his ex-wives had been virgins but he had been with a virgin before and knew from that experience that she would be too sore to try again with him for a couple nights yet. He wasn't sure he would be able to hold off until the end of their bath together much less a couple days.

She was for the most part passive as he moved the soap over her smooth skin, her arms coming up at first to shield herself when he went to clean her chest but he had simply pegged her with another stare till she had lowered her hands to rest over her groin. He had a feeling she wouldn't be so easy to persuade to allow him access to clean that, but one bridge at a time. The soap bar was small enough that it allowed him to cup her breasts as he cleaned them and he did so at noticeable leisure. He could feel his sex start to stir again, pressed against the cheek of her arse in response to his lust.

Sarah obviously felt it too because she looked up at him in surprise and worry but surprisingly kept silent.

He kind of liked her this way. Jareth dipped his head down to kiss her again but she turned her head away from him so he couldn't reach her lips, coming into contact with her jaw instead. He pulled back with a scowl.

"Sarah, look at me," he sighed, about at the end of his patience with this defiant attitude of hers.

She hesitated, but sure enough, her head slowly swung back around and she looked up at him. Her brows were drawn tight in suspicion and waywardness. She was being so difficult.

"Say something," he snapped at her, annoyed with her silent insolence.

Her voice was quiet but firm when she finally did speak up after a lengthy amount of time where they had simply stared off against each other. "You raped me," she accused him, "What the hell do you expect me to say to you?"

He couldn't have kept the shock off his face if he had tried. He had never expected something like that to come out of her mouth. "Rape you?!"

She simply continued to glare at him with those accusing eyes of hers.

Anger crept through him at how silly and unfair she was being. "I didn't rape you," he growled out. "You are my wife, there was no rape involved."

This time she was the one to be shocked. "I told you I didn't want to do that!" she insisted, just short of shouting at him, something his ears certainly didn't appreciate at such a close proximity. "I even begged you to stop and you didn't listen. You just went ahead and forced me to let you. You even held me down! I would think that that's what rape is!" she was shouting right in his face now, her eyes starting to well up in tears. "You just wouldn't stop, even after I begged-"

He didn't let her continue, dropping the soap and placing his now free hand against her chest and pushing her back to dunk her underneath the water quickly before pulling her back up above the surface with his other hand that had been positioned behind her back the whole time she had been in his arms. She sputtered and kicked a little when she first came back up, calming down slightly when he made no move to dunk her again. The shouting had stopped though, and that had been his goal. "Yell at me like that again and I shall hold you under for longer next time," he warned her calmly. Her eyes bugged and she shivered all over while the tears finally sprang free of her eyes in her fear and slid down her cheeks. Gods, she was always crying it seemed like.

"I did not rape you, Sarah," he continued in the same calm voice. "I am your husband now and you are my wife. If I wish to have sex with you, besides it being one of your marital duties, then that is my right. Even if you were not my wife than as your king it would be my right to still take you to my bed regardless. If I wanted to take you again in this tub it would also be my right, something I do want to do very much, by the way, but am refraining from because it would only hurt you more till you have had a chance to heal. As my wife and queen, your body belongs to me and it is your duty to me to submit whenever I should want you to. There was no rape involved just now, Sarah."

She was doing it again, looking at him with those cruel eyes that looked at him with the same fear and disgust that most reserve for when they see rodents scurrying across the kitchen floors. What he wouldn't give, wouldn't do, to see a drop of love in them for him. She continued to shiver in his arms even though the water was still hot. The look on her face gave away exactly what she was thinking, that he was crazy to think such things and that she would never love him. He wasn't insane. It was just the way things were. In time she would come to terms with that. Hopefully soon, too, because if she kept looking at him like that he was sure that he would just go mad.

Jareth let out a very long sigh and fished around in the water next to them till his fingers landed on the little bar of soap. He went back to his task of cleaning Sarah, making her sit up in his lap so he could run the soap over her back. She continued to shiver in his arms and her tears fell down into the water like she was fighting very hard to keep from outright sobbing. He said and did nothing to her as he continued to wash her, lost in his own thoughts.

X

Sarah fought hard as he held and touched her to not cry outright for fear it would just upset him again. Water was falling down her face with her tears from when he had dunked her under the water and she had been really startled and upset by it. Wasn't she allowed to feel upset about being beaten and raped? Apparently, she wasn't and that thought just made her want to cry even more. He was insane. Everyone in this world was.

There was only one thought that pounded through her head with every beat of her heart and she listened well to it.

I have to get out of here. Even if it kills me.


	5. Chapter 5

Sarah looked around her –correction- Jareth's room, lost as to what she should do now that she was alone. After her bath from hell, Jareth had insisted on drying her off and had wrapped her in a floor length deep purple robe that draped her like a blanket and smelled strongly of himself. She could only assume that this was in fact his own robe that she was feeling dwarfed in. He had left so suddenly after that because there had been a knock on their door and Jareth had answered it, speaking in hushed tones with another male voice before looking rather angry and informing her that she would have to entertain herself for an hour or two because he had some matters to see to and wouldn't take long.

She had been quick to agree to let him go. She didn't want to be around him. And besides, whatever the matters were that he had to tend to had really left him looking mad and she didn't want him anywhere around her in such a state anyway.

She sat on the edge of the large bed in the robe, hating that once more she would be covered in his scent. Every time she breathed in he was all she could smell. There was nothing else she could cover herself with though. Her clothes had been taken away the night before after the first time Jareth had taken her to the bathtub and she didn't want to go near the bed just yet to get either the blankets or her towel. Both of which probably just smelled more like Jareth and… other things… anyway. It was too chilly in the room to really go without anything though.

She felt lost as to what she should do next. She needed to get out of here. Jareth had mentioned that Karen had escaped him several times, and that he hadn't been able to follow her to the Aboveground, what she needed was to find the way out that Karen had. She went over to the door and tried the knob for good measure, not really all that surprised when she found it locked. She went to the door that he had said would be her room, she had gathered from the doors in the hall that there had to be a door in there that led to the hall. That door, however, was also locked against her. She let out a sigh and looked back at the balcony doors but reminded herself that she had already checked out there for a means of escape and found none.

She went back over to the hallway door and studied it for a minute. There was no lock on this side though. She hadn't thought that the wood was any thicker than it was on most doors though. Sarah moved back and squared up her stance, she pulled the robe back from her legs, making sure it wouldn't get in her way for what she was about to try. She had always wanted to try it but hadn't dared to at home or anything. She had watched countless movies and shows where someone would simply kick a door open, using enough force to break a lock. She wished she weren't barefoot for this, but it wasn't like she would be kicking it with her toes.

Sarah braced herself and counted to three under her breath, "One… two…"

Sarah kicked out as hard as she could, her foot slamming against the door with all her strength. The door shook from the force, but so did her entire leg and she was thrown backwards with a scream right onto her ass. Her whole lower body felt like it had been hit with a… well… a door really.

She stayed there for a few minutes, entirely too sore to move just yet. The doors on TV were obviously either rigged or those people were amazingly strong, like the type that could lift cars off kids and such junk. "Damn it!" she cursed.

Once her leg had stopped throbbing she moved her toes and then her ankle, working her way up with her joints. Apparently nothing was broken. She pulled herself back up and pressed her hand against the door, hoping maybe it had given way even a little bit without her noticing.

Fat chance.

Sure enough, it held firm.

She looked around the room, still hoping that maybe she could find something to break it with. There wasn't much to work with though. In fact, she really only had carpet, soap and what was on the bed at her disposal. Even if she had been MacGyver she was screwed with materials like those to work with. Sarah leaned her head against the solid wood of the door and closed her eyes, wishing with everything she had that the door would disappear or open or even that she could melt into the wood, anything to allow her to get out of this room.

She had thought kicking the door had hurt, but it was nothing compared to when the lock clicked and the door swung open, catching her off guard and smacking her square in the head in almost the same spot that Jareth had hit her. She let out a startled and pain-filled scream and hurtled back from the door, falling down on her already bruised bottom once more.

"My lady I am truly sorry!" Tallia screeched, rushing inside the room and to her side, dropping down to her knees next to Sarah so roughly that Sarah was sure she couldn't be the only one in pain now. "I had no idea that you would be standing right there on the other side! It was an accident I swear!" Her voice was pure panic and grated on Sarah's aching head like sandpaper. "Please have mercy on me my lady and do not tell his majesty!"

Have mercy? What an odd thing to say. "Yeah sure," Sarah grumbled, not really caring as long as she stopped talking. Why would she tell Jareth-

Sarah's eyes widened at her own realization. She was the queen now as far as Jareth was concerned, so maybe Tallia saw her as such too. When she had hit Jareth it had been Tallia who had really explained to her that to hit a royal would mean death to anyone. She wouldn't want Tallia to die for something like that, especially since it had been an accident. On the other hand though, Sarah suddenly saw her doorway out of here.

"Miss?" Tallia asked, her voice shaking slightly. Sarah tried her best to look really upset and angry when she looked back over at the fae.

"Tallia you hit me with the door, you struck the queen."

Tallia's eyes bugged so far Sarah was afraid they would fall right out of her skull. She felt bad for this, truly she did, but she needed to get out of here. She wouldn't actually say a thing to Jareth about it if it would result in the female's death. She was completely aware it was an accident and that she was sorry for it, but desperate times…

"Your majesty please have mercy on me!" Tallia practically wailed while tears started to build up in her eyes. "I did not mean for it to happen, I was only coming to check on your well being I swear it!"

"Tallia," Sarah said, hoping her own calm demeanor might calm the female down a little too. "I won't tell Jareth, but you must do something for me."

Tallia looked up at Sarah, glimpses of hope in her eyes. "Y-yes?"

"You have to leave the door open for me when you leave."

The flashes of hope vanished from Tallia's eyes and she started shaking her head back and forth. "Miss I can't, if his majesty found out that I allowed you to leave this room against his orders, I really will be killed."

Sarah hoped she was exaggerating. "He would never know you had any involvement in it. As far as he would have to be concerned I got out of here on my own. The door is still open right now all I want is for you to leave it open."

Tallia simply continued to shake her head. She wasn't budging on this.

Sarah looked at the door. It was but a lung away and cracked open already. She would like a chance to find her way out of here without Tallia raising any alarms right away. Not to mention she would first have to fight her way past Tallia if she forced her way out.

Tallia stopped shaking her head and looked up at Sarah, then over at the door like she was piecing together Sarah's thoughts. She looked back and Sarah met the female's eyes head on.

They both lunged for the door at the same time.

Tallia wrapped her arms around Sarah's waist and tried to hold her back from the door, but Sarah had a grip on the handle and wasn't about to let it go. The willowy female was surprisingly strong and enduring as Sarah twisted her body this way and that to get free. She needed her legs to run and currently they were being held onto by Tallia's spindly arms. "Your majesty please!" Tallia cried out.

Sarah ignored her; she needed to get out of here. She said a silent apology to the female in her mind, and then focused on freeing just her right leg from Tallia's hold. It took a lot of twisting and effort, but she was at last able to get it free, pulling back before kicking Tallia right in the shoulder as hard as she could with her heel. Tallia's strength was lost to her as she was stunned momentarily and Sarah took advantage by pulling her other foot free and crawling on hands and knees out into the hall way. She let out a scream despite herself when Tallia came out after her with newfound speed and strength and grabbed Sarah around the waist again, pulling her back into the room and then doing a little jump around her to slam the door closed on her face.

She had been so close! She had been in the hall!

Sarah reached up for the door knob and twisted it over and over again in a last desperate attempt but it was no good. The door had already been locked against her once more and the only difference was that once again her head was pounding. Tallia's voice penetrated the wood of the door, sounding winded and scared. "I am sorry your majesty, but the king has forbidden anyone to let you out into the castle. He'll have my head if I disobey him."

Sarah clenched her fist and slammed it against the door so Tallia would get the message that right now she didn't give a damn. She was pissed and her headache was back with vengeance. She leaned against the wall next to the door and tried to wait out the pain. She felt like she was going to pass out if she didn't calm down. She leaned her head back softly against the wall; the stones cool against her heated skin giving her little relief, and closed her eyes. She would let herself calm down and perhaps she would get another chance or think of something else to try.

X

Jareth sat in his parent's private library, wishing he was anywhere else at the moment; namely back home and in bed with his wife once more. The feel of her soft skin still ghosted over his own body and he had a hard time not allowing himself to think more about the sex. Now was not the time or place to become aroused.

Mavid stood behind Jareth and off to the side, just like Erib was behind his father and mother. Jareth's mother stared at him with all the disappointment and grief a mother could in good conscience throw at her son and Jareth found it a lot harder to make eye contact with her than it was to meet his father's irate scowl. His mother was a stark contrast to his father in most every way, with pale hair the same shade as his own and eyes the color of new spring grass. Her skin was naturally tan and free of any blotches whatsoever. Her lips were red enough that one could have assumed she was wearing lipstick if they hadn't known that that was just her natural coloring. She was very delicate in most every way, and the smallness of her body allowed no one to believe otherwise. She looked like she was about to be broken all the time, like many women of the fae did.

Jareth had grown up around his father's legendary scowl that had been known to make giants run in fear and had not only become used to it, but could just about imitate it perfectly.

"You brought the counsel into it!" his father hissed at him again, "That is what really gets me, is that you brought the counsel into it and now they have ruled that your marriage to this female is binding."

Jareth rolled his eyes. He had told his father he wouldn't be answering any calls for the next day or so, he had wanted to spend time with his new wife. It had been pretty hard to refuse though when Mavid came and informed him that the royal guard was here to escort him to his father's castle one way or another. Jareth was in a truly sour mood as he sat in his seat and listened to his father's objections and rants. They all meant nothing after all, but to waste his time. It was already done and wasn't about to change.

"It's all going to seem so scandalous," his mother fretted, "You didn't even have a wedding. What are people going to say when they find out about this?"

"First of all it **is** legal and binding and it would be even if the counsel didn't confirm that fact. Secondly, let them say what they want. The only reason it was brought about so quickly was because Carrie tried to have the counsel appeal their decision to give me Sarah. If I hadn't been married to Sarah at the time the counsel could have ordered for her to be released back into Carrie's custody, something they could never do if she were my wife."

"You should have let them take her back then," his father snapped.

Jareth's fists clenched on the armrests of his chair but he held his tongue. He had had more than enough of this. No one was ever going to take Sarah away from him. He would kill to keep her if he had to.

Jareth stood up and Mavid straightened up, taking the cue that they were about to leave. "If this is all you demanded I come down here at once to see you about-

Hamold slammed his fist down on the arm of his own seat. "Damn it son you will sit down and listen to us! Besides being your parents we are your king and queen and you will not treat us with such disrespect!"

"Or what?" Jareth growled out, "Will you wage war on the goblin kingdom father? You do not order me around anymore, I am also a king, with my own kingdom! Since you are not able to punish me I guess the equivalent would be declaring war."

"Good lord Jareth, don't be so dramatic. No one is declaring war over this," his mother insisted, never once raising her tone.

"Let's not rule anything out," Erib muttered under his breath. Jareth's mother shot him a disapproving look over her shoulder and he fell silent, his face ever emotionless.

"King of the goblins," his father muttered in disgust, earning his own look from his wife.

Jareth took a deep breath and tried to hold onto his temper, but he felt himself failing. He was a couple comments away from throwing something.

"When are we going to be able to meet her?" his mother asked, completely changing the subject in what was probably an attempt to subdue the tension. "And I have yet to see my grandchild. Almost two years old and I have never even seen my own grandson."

That question turned Jareth's attention from his father's and Erib's snide comments. He didn't know how to answer that. Right now he didn't trust Sarah enough to let her out of their room for fear she may try to do something stupid, much less have her meet his parents. He could just imagine how well that would go over with both parties. "I can have little Jareth visit whenever it is convenient for you, mother. Sarah needs more time to adjust though."

His mother raised her brow in question but kept silent on the matter. "Very well, we can spare time for him as early as tomorrow morning. I would like to at least see about holding a ball soon so we may present your new wife and son to the aristocracy properly. It's only fitting after all since she is a queen now and your son is a prince. Since there was no wedding per say a coming out ball is the least you can do."

Jareth fought the urge to roll his eyes again. "I will be sure to bring little Jareth over in the morning. We will be leaving now," he looked back at Mavid, who nodded his head and moved up to Jareth's side.

"I still think a divorce would be better than a coming out party, and it would be the perfect time to do so before word goes around that you are even married," Hamold huffed.

"Hamold!" the queen hissed, "To even suggest such a thing is shameful. Only poor and inept people get divorces anymore."

"Good bye," Jareth huffed, having had more than his fill of both his parents for the night.

He hurried out the door, but behind him he could hear his father's voice grumbling to his mother. "He's **your** son Kaleen."

X

"Should I take your son to your parents tomorrow or would you like to escort him yourself?" Mavid asked, walking just a step behind Jareth down the halls of the goblin castle.

"I'll allow you to take him, and I will pick him up around lunch."

Mavid nodded his head. "The wall around the garden is still under construction, should be done within the week," he added in a business-like tone.

Jareth looked back at him but kept walking. Mavid's expression was closed off. "Good."

"The work they have been doing in the room adjoining yours is finished as well, sire."

Jareth stopped walking and turned back to Mavid. "Do you have something to say to me?" he was still feeling a little bristled from the meeting with his parents and didn't have the patience to put up with any attitude from Mavid right now. Mavid's equivalent of giving Jareth attitude was usually acting as professional and distant from him as possible.

Mavid kept his complete composure as his eyes regarded Jareth in the same way that his own father tended to do. It made Jareth want to automatically start shouting at the male. "What does your majesty mean?"

Jareth crossed his arms over his chest and leaned against the wall. "You only ever get that formal with me anymore when you have something on your mind."

Mavid shrugged and crossed his own arms. "It's not my place."

"Bunk! You know that I don't care what your station is. If you have something to say to me then say it. You've never hesitated before and I would hate to deny you any beloved past time of yours."

Mavid smirked at that before turning serious again. "It's just that I still remember how it was between you and Carrie during the last years of your marriage. The only thing worse off than the kingdom was you yourself. Now it feels like you're just picking up where that marriage left off with this girl. You forget who it was that had to go and retrieve her every time she ran away."

Jareth's eyes narrowed. "I never asked you to do that."

Mavid pegged him with a stare that was just as cold. "Part of my duties to you is also to the kingdom, a missing queen demands to be found and returned to her king."

Jareth raised his brow at that. "Not to mention I remember you never seemed to mind it at all."

Mavid remained silent, staring back at Jareth. Both of the males looked up at the sound of someone rushing down the hall. The wet nurse was heading towards them, her hair looking tangled and she looked like she was very upset. Her eyes landed on them both and she paused like she was considering running for a second. She seemed to think better of it and made her way down the hall to them, her feet dragging along. "Your highness," she muttered, giving a curtsey.

"What is it?" Jareth didn't like the look on her face, it was very unnerving.

"Your majesty forgive me," she implored, her voice barely above a whisper.

Jareth's eyes narrowed on her and he thought he saw her shiver under his gaze. "What have you done?"

"I went to check on the queen, to see that she had everything she needed. When I opened the door I didn't realize she was on the other side and it hit her, I swear it was an accident, but when I tried to make sure she was okay she tried to leave the room. I kept her from succeeding, but she did make it to the hall way. I am so sorry your majesty." Her head dropped in shame.

Jareth let out a sigh as his temper started to flare. "Mavid, see to her while I go and check on Sarah." He moved around the nurse and headed towards his tower in a huff. She had tried to escape already! Mavid's and his father's words were both pounding in his head as he stomped down the hall towards his room. He wasn't picking up where he had left off, he wasn't. He had brought Sarah here with every intention of making her his wife and creating a family with her and his son. He wanted to be able to show her love. She was denying him the ability to do any of that with her stubborn and disgraceful actions though and made him constantly feel like a fool, always second guessing himself. He was never like this. He hated the thought of his father and Mavid possibly being right about this whole thing, they weren't. Things were simply bound to be shaky at first. It just wasn't fair though.

Jareth climbed the stairs to his room, pausing outside the door to try to calm himself down. It didn't work though, all he could think about was how foolish he felt at that moment, something that just made his temper even more foul. Jareth unlocked the door and rushed into the room, almost walking right past Sarah without even realizing it.

He saw her out of the corner of his eye and turned to see her wrapped up in his robe, hunched up on the floor against the wall, perched precariously against it like she was about to fall over. Her eyes were closed. Jareth felt a pang of fear go through him and he crouched down next to her, terrified for a second that she was really hurt or (gods forbid) not breathing. He reached out to touch her face and hair, turning her head to him. A small moan escaped her lips and he instantly felt a wave of relief that she was at least alive and seemed to be okay for the most part.

"Sarah, can you hear me? Say something Sarah," Jareth commanded her gently.

Her eyes fluttered open for a second before closing again. She muttered something but he didn't catch it.

"What?"

Sarah didn't open her eyes and the only thing keeping her head up were his hands cradling it. Her voice was barely a whisper when she spoke. "I'm so tired," she moaned.

He couldn't help but frown at that, but his voice sounded soft even to him, "Probably wore yourself out when you tried to leave."

He scooped her up in his arms and she let out another sigh before her head settled against his shoulder and she completely relaxed in his arms, already back to sleep.

The feel of her against him like this pulled at his heart. He had had every intention of coming in here to yell and scream at her for being so ungrateful and difficult. With her acting like this though, how could he? The nurse had mentioned she had gotten her with the door, perhaps which had knocked her out. Maybe the combined stress of the last few days along with the lack of proper sleep and nutrition had also simply gotten to her.

He carried her over to the bed and laid her down in it, situating her around so that he could pull the blankets up to her waist. He leaned back and had to pause and take in the sight before him. She was a vision in front of him, his robe incasing her and her body completely relaxed against his sheets and pillows. Her brow was drawn slightly, like she fretted even in her dreams. She looked so cozy, he wanted nothing more than to climb in beside her and hold her while she slept. Jareth leaned down and placed his lips against hers, barely a brush of flesh.

She didn't pull away or flinch like she tended to when she was awake and he touched her. She continued to simply lay there, her lips parted just slightly, drawing him back again with a slightly deeper kiss. She was entirely soft and oh so inviting in her passiveness as he kissed her, her lips even moving the slightest bit against his. Finally he pulled back from her, his breathing more ragged than before, driven by passion. Her breaths stayed their same steady rhythm as they passed over her lips, now swollen and rosier from the contact.

She truly was an image.

Jareth straightened up from her and removed his clothes, keeping his eyes on his wife the entire time as his skin prickled from the memory of the feel of her own against his and his member hardened halfway. Once he was fully unclothed Jareth moved around to the far side of the bed where there was more room for him and, pulling back the comforter, slipped into bed beside Sarah. He moved up till his body was about flush against hers, the robe being the only barrier between their bodies. He thought briefly of disrobing her but then decided against it, she was just too worn out even if her body had been up for more intimate contact. He lay down on his side so his chest was against her back and slipped his arms around her, holding her close to him. Her body tensed for a second before settling back against his with another sigh. He placed another kiss against the back of her head.

He found himself smirking because he couldn't get over it, he had come here to scold her and here he was holding her. How did she manage to turn his world like this all the time? Jareth found himself sighing as he laid his head down on the pillow to rest with her, his nose filling with her warm sweet smell every time he breathed in.

X

Sarah dreamed of many things as she slept, as she often did. She dreamed of being a great crusader on a white steed, riding free and untamed along a dirt path in the middle of an endless and beautiful countryside on her way home from battle. She had been victorious and now she was rewarded with her freedom and independence to go back to her family, her saddlebags weighed down with riches. She didn't make it there though, the good king needed her for yet another quest and it was urgent for her to go right away. Her family would have to wait.

She dreamed then that she was in school, but it wasn't her normal high school. This one was built like it, but every window she passes looked out onto a giant wasteland, nothing but death was outside the walls of the building. All her friends and the kids she had known all her life were there, but they all had sharper features and knew magic. They all also hated her now and mocked her at every chance. It was horrible, but she had to stay for there was no place else she could go.

She even had a dream that she was in the park, Toby was there with her too. She had packed a picnic for them and it was getting late. She had no idea why they were in the middle of a picnic though because they needed to be running. The goblin king was after Toby, he wanted his son back. Sarah could hear the goblins in the forest and grabbed Toby up in a hurry, leaving the food and plates behind as she ran through the park towards home. But when she came to the little bridge that would lead to the exit there were only more trees. She was lost, and the goblins were closing in on her fast. She was going to lose Toby if she didn't find her way out of this godforsaken park. She turned to try another way, only to come face to face with the goblin king himself. Jareth looked down at her with complete hatred that chilled her bones as he took Toby out of her arms. "How dare you take my child from me Sarah," he said in an icy tone of voice she recognized. "Why do you make me hate you so?"

The goblins all burst out of the trees and bushes then, coming at her with complete rage and malice and she screamed till her lungs cracked.

Sarah woke up with a start, tears in her eyes and pure fear left over from her dreams still pumping through her body. She let out a shaky sigh and looked around to try to calm herself down, but it didn't work half as well as it had when she was back in her own room in the Aboveground. The sun was still out but it looked like it was getting very close to sinking. She looked down at herself to find that a pair of arms were wrapped securely around her, one around her waist and the other tucked between her shoulder and neck and the bed, coming up to wrap around her upper chest. She knew who the arms belonged to and she fought the urge to throw them off her.

She remembered trying to escape, and Tallia stopping her. After that though she must have nodded off or blacked out or a little of both. She was back in the bed though and with Jareth and that was certainly not where she had intended to end up. Sarah made to move out of Jareth's arms, only for them to tighten like vises around her and keep her held firmly against him. He was awake. It was obvious. Sarah stayed very still and waited for the worst. Was he mad about what she had done? Did he even know?

She chanced a look back over her shoulder.

Jareth's head rose up from the pillow behind her so he could meet her eyes. He looked like he too had been sleeping. His face was neither angry or pleased or calculating as he looked back at her. "Evening Sarah," he greeted, his voice nonchalant, "Sleep well?"

"Did I sleep?" she asked, her voice hoarser than she had meant for it to be.

"For the better part of the afternoon." He was still very casual in his demeanor, loosening his grip on her and allowing his head to fall back to the pillow. Sarah used the little room she was afforded to turn and face him, only to blush a ruby red when she realized he was unclothed, something Jareth seemed to find highly amusing as he smirked back at her. "Peeking at me Sarah?"

Sarah felt like her face was too close to an open flame. "Not at all!" she snapped indignantly.

Jareth's smirk widened in his amusement. "Fine then."

Sarah didn't want to put up with him mocking her any more than she wanted to put up with him touching her. Sarah moved to break out of his hold once more but once more he held on and pulled her closer against him till he was close enough to kiss her if he wanted to, something that made Sarah only more cross.

"Not so fast," he said, his tone slightly sharper as his smirk faded. "We have some things to discuss you and I."

Sarah didn't like the tone in his voice, she stopped pulling away and listened.

"I was informed that you tried to escape this morning while I was away. Is this true?" His eyes had regained their usual power to seem like he could see right into her. With how unusual everything was around here maybe he could.

Sarah felt fear for his wrath prickling up the back of her neck. Tallia had told him that then. She wanted to be childish about it and tell him about how Tallia had hit her with the door first, but it wasn't worth it. If Tallia was right and he did decide to have her killed for striking Sarah (accidently or not) it would be blood on her hands and she didn't want to live with that.

Sarah looked down at Jareth's chest so she wouldn't have to meet his eyes. "I just wanted out of this room," she murmured pitifully, that wasn't a lie after all, "I feel like I'm caged in here or something. I haven't been out of this room for the past two days."

God had it really been just that long? It felt like a month or at least a week. How could so much have happened in just two short days?

She chanced a look up at Jareth, who didn't seem stark-raving mad or anything as he looked down at her, but his brows were drawn just the slightest bit like he was really listening to her. That gave her hope. "I just didn't feel like I could stand to be in this room another second," she sighed. She felt a little proud of herself, using little truths to make a lie that sounded like she wasn't trying to escape him but merely the room itself. If she admitted she was trying to run away from him she was sure he would be more than just a little miffed with her, maybe even end up striking her again and in the end she wouldn't be rid of him anyway. But the room… maybe he would do as much as allow her out of the room and then she could find a means of escape.

Jareth reached up and she steeled herself against flinching as his hand started to stroke her hair. He really seemed to like it for how often he touched it. His face was thoughtful as he stared at her. She looked back down at his chest because meeting his eyes while he acted like this with her just felt too intimate. "I suppose I wasn't aware," he murmured, continuing to pet her long hair.

Sarah continued to simply stare at his chest, afraid that anything she said or did might turn this entire conversation around, and right now it seemed to be working in her favor.

She watched as he smiled slightly out of the corner of her eye. "You won't have to be restricted to this room any longer Sarah."

She felt absolutely stunned as she looked up at him. He was going to let her out? Was it really that easy? "I-I'm not?"

Jareth smiled. "No, I have a surprise for you in fact." He released her from his hold and slid out of bed, an edge of anticipation about him as he moved.

Sarah looked immediately away. She had almost forgotten that he was nude. It still felt really strange and slightly embarrassing to see Jareth without any clothes on, especially when he usually dressed so elaborately. Not to mention the fact that she wasn't used to seeing guys nude. She remembered about a year ago back in the Aboveground she had been hanging out with her two best friends, Mandy and Rachel one afternoon and Mandy had found one of her older brother's porn tapes. Curious, they had popped it in and then spent about five minutes screaming, squealing and laughing hysterically as two women had gone at it. They had all gone quite though when a man came on screen and they had their first look of what a male looked like. It had been as strange then as it was now.

Not to mention the fact that Jareth didn't look like that human male had. When he was aroused he was still long and thick, but there was no resemblance to a mushroom. Sarah half wanted to believe that it was because Jareth wasn't human, but mostly suspected that it was because he wasn't circumcised, something that wasn't too surprising since they were down in the Underground after all and circumcision was largely a religious influence. Who knew what religion they followed down here, if any?

 _[Sorry if I just mind-fucked anyone there]_

Jareth laughed out loud at her behavior. "Honestly Sarah, how can you be so shy around my body yet, we have already laid together as husband and wife."

She scowled at him before she could stop herself. He really wanted to bring that up to her? Laid together… bah, more like he climbed on top of her and had a field day while she cried and begged him to stop. Sarah felt her face heat up again and more tears tried to break from her eyes at the memory. It had felt so humiliating, and was even worse in retrospect. The thought that he intended to do it again yet made her just feel sick to her stomach. She clutched the robe tighter around herself.

Jareth came around the bed in all his nakedness to stand next to her, "Come on Sarah, or did you now want to stay in this room?" he held his hand out for her to take.

She considered slapping it away, but that would have just been silly and pointless rebelliousness. She took his hand and tried not to pay any more attention to his lack of clothes than he seemed to do as he helped her slide out of bed and onto her feet. She had expected him to lead her to the door to the hall, only to be surprised when he led her instead to the door that supposedly led to an adjoining room. Jareth reached out and opened the door with ease, but she could have sworn earlier it had been locked against her.

He read her questioning look with ease and an effortless smile came to his face, "I had the locks taken off the door."

She didn't like the way he said that. He stepped back and gestured for her to enter. "They finished work on your room, I hope it is to your liking."

Sarah stepped past him to look into the room. It wasn't as large as Jareth's but it still would have taken up the space of her old living room and kitchen and then maybe a little more. The first things she noticed were all the flowers. The room was coated with the perfume of lilacs because of all the bushels of purple lilacs that hung on the walls and sat in the corners of the room. The walls were stone like in the rest of the castle, but they were draped with transparent green drapes to soften the look. All the furniture was a deep brown wood and looked very expensive. The little desk in the corner of the room was carved elaborately so that each leg looked like dwarfs were standing on top of each other to hold up the flat board at the top. The same had been done to the chair that accommodated it. Next to the desk on the wall were two very long shelves mounted into the stone and weighted down with stacks of books. A quick glance told Sarah that they seemed to be of the fairy tale variety, the same sort she had in her own room at home. A large bed was placed against the wall that housed the only window in the room. It was a little less extravagant than Jareth's, comfortable looking with goose-down mattresses and pillows. The blankets were a rich brown in color that reminded her of chocolate and the pillows were all deep purple. There were more lilacs placed in a bouquet on the center. Carved posts rose up like trees at the corners of her bed into a canopy of more chocolaty sheets but these didn't hang down around the bed like Jareth's did.

The window wasn't large, but it did allow for sunlight to spill into much of the space. On the walls that didn't have windows were doors, one for each of the three. One she and Jareth had just come in from so she knew where that led to, and the other she could guess led out into the hall because it was facing in the direction. The other one across the room from them though she wasn't sure of.

Jareth stepped up next to her. "We can change anything you don't like," he mentioned.

Sarah could feel his eyes intense on her again, gauging her every reaction like he really did hope she approved. Sarah said nothing as she went over to the shelves of books, running her hand over a copy of The Swan Princess. There were more bits of lilacs scattered over the books. She was thankful that they were in fact her favorite flower, otherwise it would be way too much. Jareth moved across her room to the door that she wasn't sure about where it led. He placed his hand on it and waited till she turned her head to fully look at him before he said anything. "This door leads out into the hall," he informed her.

Sarah frowned in confusion. That didn't make sense. The hall did not curve as far as she could tell, it went straight. That couldn't be the right door. She looked back over at the door that should have led out into the hall. It was against the proper wall, she was sure of it. Jareth went over to that door next, a little smirk on his face. "This is another part of your surprise."

She moved over to stand next to him, completely forgetting for the moment that he still wore no clothes. Jareth opened the door and revealed a closet the size of her old room. Both walls were lined with expensive and fine looking dresses of about every color and shape, each looking very extravagant. At the end of the walls were two mirror panels. Jareth waved his hand and one of the panels slid back to reveal shoes. Not just any shoes though, slippers and heels of every color and style imaginable with everything from flowers to diamonds fastened to them. Jareth waved his hand in the other direction and the other panel slid back and she was almost blinded. It was full of jewels. Diamonds and sapphires and emeralds and stones she had never even seen before were placed in necklaces and earrings and rings the likes of which she had never dreamed of seeing behind department store's glass cases. She had been to a jewelry gallery once on a fieldtrip and had been allowed to hold in her hand a bracelet with precious diamonds on it that were hand set in an intricate design that had been worth $60,000 dollars. These jewels she looked at now made that bracelet seem like a Cracker Jack prize.

It was stunning, but she was still confused by the fact that this really should have been the door to the hallway. This place was so confusing; no wonder the labyrinth had been so hard, the castle didn't seem much better.

"Well what do you think?" Jareth asked, finally at his wits end from her complete silence.

Sarah looked at the closet and the room. It was gorgeous, fit for a queen of the highest standing. In different circumstances the closet alone would have made her squeal and scream and jump up and down like some sort of half-brained school girl. It was everything she could have ever dreamed of and it was all hers. It was all for her.

She couldn't afford it though, the price was too great. It was all for her as long as she could love, fear, and obey Jareth. This room was meant for his queen. She didn't want it.

She wanted her old life back.

She panicked when tears once again pressed at her eyes and blinked rapidly to get rid of them before Jareth could see, but they just kept coming. He saw them of course. The instant he did his features darkened and Sarah turned away from him, moving away from the closet and him till she stood in the center of the room, her back to him.

She jumped but couldn't bring herself to face him when she heard him slam the closet door closed.

"Do you hate the room or the fact that it's yours?" Jareth's voice was thick with disgust and impatience with her.

Sarah shook her head but couldn't speak; if she did she would really start crying. It was a vicious cycle at the moment. She was terrified of crying because she knew it would anger him but the fear was just making her cry harder, and then she would be more afraid because she was crying harder. She bit down on her lips to try to keep it all in. She needed to calm down but Jareth was back to being in a foul mood behind her and that only made her so nervous and fearful she could barely think straight enough to calm down.

"I suppose I'm to believe that those are tears of joy then?" Jareth snapped.

She still couldn't answer him. She wrapped her arms around her shaking body. She had really hoped that he was going to let her out into the castle, but instead had just presented her with another piece of cage. She once owned a hamster. Every time they got a new brightly colored tube to add onto his cage he would venture into it, exploring it, but once he saw that it only led to another dead end rather than freedom he would return to the main center of his cage. She felt like that hamster now.

Jareth moved up behind her at a brisk pace and she braced herself for the worse, letting out a nervous scream when he gripped the back of her arm and dragged her over to the bed, flinging her down onto it. He didn't go after her though. Sarah was frantic as she collected herself, sitting up and pulling herself over to the side of the bed with every intention of getting up off of it. She remembered the last time he had been like this and right now they both had on just too few clothes for her liking. Jareth shoved her shoulder so she was forced to sit down on the side of the bed again. "Sit down now before you really make me mad," he hissed.

Sarah didn't try to get up again, staring up at him in fear.

"This is another thing we need to discuss. I am sick and tired of this attitude of yours, Sarah." He was very intimidating as he towered over her, glaring down at her like he would hit her at any second. "You have done nothing but give me grief since you got here. You show no appreciation for anything I do for you. I am tired of feeling like nothing I do is good enough for you, is worthy of you. You were nothing but a commoner in a common world before I brought you here and made you queen. Am I really asking too much that you show an ounce of gratitude?"

Sarah was absolutely and immeasurably stunned in a way that a closet full of jewels could have never accomplished. "Gr-gratitude?!"

Jareth scowled down at her. "Yes gratitude. Do you know what would have happened to you in your life up there Sarah? You would have worked all your life at a job that didn't really matter in the end, worrying everyday about bills and making ends meet and what troubles lay in your future. Maybe you would have found someone, another worthless commoner who could be right there to worry about the same things with you. You would grow old and die without having really done or changed anything at all within just a few short years. Less than a hundred years is such an obscurely short time after all, hardly worth calling a lifetime."

Jareth's expression softened and Sarah felt surprised as he reached out and took her hands in his, running his thumbs over her wrists soothingly as he knelt down on the floor before her. "Here you are no commoner, and you've no need to worry about anything because I can do that all for you. I can take care of you in ways that no mortal man could. I can give you anything you've ever wanted, including love. You will live for thousands of years here because of the lack of time Sarah, accomplishing many things and making changes that shape this very world. You are being handed your chance for absolute happiness on a silver platter. That seems to me like something to be grateful for."

She couldn't keep from scowling. He was wrong. "I would have grown old and died but it would not have been like that Jareth," her voice was surprisingly steady and her tears were gone from her eyes. "I would have finished school, getting a job that I liked and wanted. It wouldn't have mattered if it changed the world or not if it was something I liked doing. If I enjoyed it it would be worthwhile. Yes I would have worried at some point or another about money and stuff, but everyone does, even kings and queens to some extent. I would have had friends, a family. I might have even found a man I could love and would love me back, and that would have made him anything but some commoner to me. I would have been happy."

Sarah glared at Jareth, who was about at her level now. "You never gave me a choice; you simply took me away from all that. Now I have no family, no friends-

"You have me," Jareth snapped, interrupting her. His hands tightened on her wrists.

Sarah scoffed at him. "You are beyond arrogant to think that you are a fair trade for all of that, especially when I didn't want you."

The look on his face almost made her want to take back her words instantly. His eyes were bottomless with their anger and his whole demeanor had gone very still. It had definitely been the wrong thing to say.

Slowly, Jareth's hands started to tighten around hers; causing Sarah's pulse to spike as they started to hurt and she tried to pull out of his grip. He only squeezed tighter with a strength that seemed impossible for anyone to own and she was sure he was going to break her hands if he didn't stop soon. Pain race up and down her arms and she tried not to scream, whimpering slightly when she heard one of her finger bones pop. She couldn't move with him hurting her like this.

"Do you know that sometimes the things you say to me just make me want to hate you?" he asked her, his voice cold enough to chill the blood in her veins. His eyes were full of threats and black deeds as he stared up at her from his spot on the ground. "You don't ever want me to hate you Sarah, that much I can promise you. If nothing else you should be grateful for that."

He released her hands so suddenly that she cried out at the relief, bringing them back to clutch to her chest. She was too scared at the moment to even tremble or blink.

"If you insist on continuing to fight me on your dues to me it will continue to be very unpleasant for you here Sarah. Just like having you as my queen, I will have everything I want from you Sarah and I have ways of getting them all, including your love."

His eyes darkened and he reached out to the lapels of the robe she wore. His eyes dared her to make a move against him as he pulled the robe from her shoulders and back from her body. Sarah started to tremble all over again. "We can start by practicing your obedience to me," Jareth murmured as his eyes took in her naked torso. "Kiss me Sarah."

She knew where this was heading and felt terrified, wishing with all her might that she were anywhere but here. Wishing she was anyone else but herself. She didn't have any choice in this. There was no one here to help her, no knights coming to her rescue. She only had herself in this, and if she refused Jareth would just punish her before he made her comply anyway. Sarah let out a shaky breath and leaned forward to kiss him, but Jareth surprised her when he leaned back out of reach, the smirk of the devil on his face. She felt confused and apprehensive.

Jareth chuckled darkly, "Not there Sarah." He stood up from the floor, Sarah felt like she could just die when this put his hips at about the same level as her head. "Kiss me now," he commanded, smirking down at her.


	6. Chapter 6

A double posting to make up for the wait.

Jareth sat at his desk in his study, glaring at the stacks of papers like he was contemplating the thought of setting them on fire. His fingers tapped against the hard wood of his desk like a drum roll, but unlike a drum roll it built up to nothing more than more glaring at nothing and no one in particular. He was amazingly pissed off with himself right now. Once more his temper had gotten the better of him and no doubt Sarah hated him even more than before. He had taken her again, once by way of her mouth and then again on the floor next to the bed.

She had refused to so much as look at him afterwards and finally he had simply marched out of the room, screaming about how he should have gifted her with an oubliette.

Jareth continued to drum his fingers over the desk and allowed his head to drop back on his chair with a sigh of frustration. How did she always do this to him? Turn him around so completely from one emotion to the next. It was exhausting.

It was getting late out now, the sky dark outside his window. He contemplated finding another room in the castle to stay in tonight. On the other hand though, Sarah had her own room now, if he did return to his the chances were good she would stay in her own rather than risk more of his wrath right now. Jareth stopped tapping on the desk to bring his hand up and pinch the bridge of his nose, then spread his fingers out to rub his eyes. This dance between them was getting pathetic.

Jareth looked up at the sound of a light knock on his door. He already knew who it was. "Come in Mavid," he sighed.

The door opened and the male stepped in, reaching up to brush back the few long strands of his dark hair before they fell once more around his face. "I heard that you were up here."

Jareth didn't answer him, just reached out and picked a random folder up from the desk and lookedthrough the random pages like he was trying to work. Mavid chuckled as he took a seat across the desk and Jareth looked up at him with annoyance. "What?" he snapped.

"Turn the folder right side up if you are going to use it to ignore me," Mavid smirked.

Jareth looked down at the folder in his hands to see that he did in fact have it turned upside down. "Damn it!" he shouted in disgust, slamming it down on the desk. This just added to his point. He couldn't focus at all and once more felt like a fool because of Sarah. She was driving him mad.

"I take it things didn't go so well with the queen?" Mavid asked, almost absentmindedly.

Jareth pegged him with a glare. "What do you think?"

"Do you want me to talk to her?"

Jareth's eyes narrowed. "No."

Mavid smirked wider at that. "I simply meant talk, but very well."

Jareth let out another sigh and settled back in his chair. "Speaking of which, how did your talk with the wet nurse go?"

Mavid shrugged. "She listened well. Truly it probably was an accident that she hit the queen but regardless she will be much more careful in the future."

"Nothing too harsh was done to her right? You do know that I still require her assistance with Little Jareth."

Mavid gave a bow of his head. "Absolutely." Mavid's eyes darkened slightly, "You sure you don't want my help with your new wife though, I am rather persuasive in my methods of making people listen."

Jareth was well aware. As a primary assistant to a king a lot of slack fell onto Mavid's shoulders to take care of and he had been trained his whole life to be able to do so, whatever that meant. Sometimes that meant administering punishments to other insubordinates, a task that Mavid was quite skilled at. Spending a life as a whipping boy had given Mavid a high tolerance for pain naturally. Because of his own tolerance to pain, however, he tended to think that others could take just as much abuse as he himself could withstand. Not to mention he also seemed to sometimes thoroughly enjoy dealing out pain to others.

It made sense really.

Jareth nodded his head. "I'm positive."

"May I ask what happened exactly?"

Jareth looked down at his desk, unsure whether or not he should share. On the one hand it was personal and rather embarrassing, but on the other hand there was nothing he couldn't share with Mavid and right now he was at a loss for what to do. If he couldn't confide in his oldest friend than whom could he talk to?

Jareth told him everything.

X

Sarah felt miserable and she ached between her legs again. He had been rough with her; using her mouth for pleasure till her jaw ached and she had gagged to the point of tears. She had wanted to bite him with every fiber of her being, but in the end that just would have made the situation much worse for herself and she had been so taken off guard by the whole thing that when Jareth had warned her that if her teeth so much as grazed him he would break every bone in her left arm she had been inclined to not doubt him. After he had come in her mouth he had proceeded to touch and kiss her till he was ready again and had pulled her down onto the rug before taking her from behind right there on the floor like some sort of animal.

He was horrid.

An absolute monster.

She wasn't going to put up with it anymore.

She had gone into the closet after Jareth had left and found a new robe to wear. This one went down to her knees and was made of a light silky material the color of melted copper. She then had proceeded to shove his robe out of the window. She didn't care to look to see where it had landed, content that it was simply gone now. There was hardly anything in this room that smelled of him now and for that she was grateful.

Everything reeked of lilacs though. She looked back over at her window where she had just thrown out Jareth's robe. Content that that would do the trick, she gathered up the lilacs from the bed and the corners of the room and hanging off the fixtures and tossed all those out of the window too. The smell lingered, but she was able to breathe easier now. Lilacs were her favorite flower, but that had been all she had been able to smell for the entirety of Jareth forcing himself on her. If he thought he could use the smell of them to make her start associating something she loved with sex he could forget it; she hated lilacs now. It had felt good to throw out all of those things along with his robe. If she had half the nerve she would march into Jareth's room and push everything she could lift or shove off of the balcony, then throw all her stuff off of it too; the books, jewels, everything. After what had just happened though that didn't seem like too great an idea unless she also planned to throw herself off the balcony too, and she wasn't about to try that. A robe was one thing, but she didn't feel like facing up to the sort of wrath Jareth would no doubt unleash upon her yet tonight if she pulled a stunt like that.

One minute he would hold her and caress her, but seconds later those gentle hands would hold her down while he used her body for his own pleasure. Sometimes he would even cause her intentional pain.

She went over to the door that led to his room, opening it just a crack just in case he was in there. She had been fairly certain he wasn't there, having heard him leave out into the hall, but still. When she didn't see any sign of him in the room she entered and made her way through to the bathroom since there didn't seem to be one in her own room. She had been willing to take the chance of Jareth being in his room because this time not only did she desperately want to wash her body off, but could still taste him in her mouth from before and felt disgusted by it.

She started filling up the tub, the water hot to the point just short of scalding. She grabbed soap and a wash cloth from one of the stands next to her, intent on scrubbing every inch of her body in the sweltering water. This time Jareth wasn't here to stop her either. She focused on her woman hood first, scrubbing herself harshly despite the pain in a desperate attempt to remove his fluids from her. She prayed that the sweltering water would boil off any sperm that was inside her too since as far as she could tell Jareth hadn't used any sort of protection either time he had finished inside of her. Despite the feeling that it more than likely didn't work like that where she could just take a hot shower and not get pregnant, she was desperate to try anything. The thought of a pregnancy churned her stomach and she forced herself to push it from her mind for now lest she puked all over the side of the tub.

He couldn't do this to her, treat her like an object. It wasn't right. It wasn't fair.

Sarah brought her hand up from the water to stare at the ring he had given her. She hated it as much as she hated him. He said it was a mark to her status as his queen; just another way of saying it was a brand that told everyone who looked at it (including her) that she belonged to him. Sarah brought the soap up and lathered her ring finger down in it, then set it aside as she used her free hand to grip the ring and pull. Like Jareth had warned her, it didn't so much as budge. It clung to her skin like it had grown out of her and Sarah felt sure she would rip her skin before she would get it to budge. She let both her hands drop back into the water in defeat. She wasn't giving up though, on the ring maybe, but not on her freedom. She didn't belong to anyone.

She was tired of crying and waiting to be rescued, she would just have to save herself.

X

"Then she refused to even look at me. I couldn't get two words out of her. So I came here to try to think," Jareth finished.

Mavid looked thoughtful as he leaned forward in his seat. "Jareth, do you remember what a self-fulfilling prophecy is?"

They had been educated side by side growing up, both doing well on their studies. Jareth could vaguely remember, "When you trick someone into believing they are unintelligent?"

Mavid rolled his eyes. "I suppose that's one way of putting it. No the theory that if you act and treat someone as if you believe a particular something about them that they too will come to believe it and act upon it whether it's actually true or not. Call an average child brilliant for example and they'll start acting and sounding smarter, call them dumb and they will reflect it; that sort of thing."

 _Oh yeah_. Jareth shrugged his shoulders. "So?"

"Sarah is acting like an insolent prisoner but from what I know that seems to be what she's being treated as. She's being locked away, given what she needs on a set schedule not of her own choosing, kept under close supervision, and is even receiving congical visits," Mavid tacked on with a mischievous grin.

Jareth couldn't help but laugh at the joke. He could see his point though.

"So what would you suggest I do?" Jareth asked.

Mavid leaned back and shrugged like it was simple, "Treat her like a queen."

The smile disappeared from Jareth's face then. "Just hand over free rein to the woman that curses me every chance she gets, has been known to attack me, and tried just hours earlier to escape?"

Mavid waved his hand to banish the statement like it was a cloud of smoke headed his way.

"I'm not in any way suggesting free rein, but a few perks might help the situation. She is queen after all, but so far she's been locked away in your room." Mavid gave Jareth a look that seemed to be saying 'you should know better than that' "That's no way to treat a queen. Perhaps letting her explore her new home may prove beneficial, or you could even give her a tour. Ease her into her role while at the same time keeping her firmly under your thumb. She is as new to our world as a child would be, so you may want to try taking baby steps with her."

Jareth thought that over. He was wary about it, but could see the sense in it. It would be nice for her to start actually acting like a queen and not a rebellious brat. Little Jareth would be at his parent's castle tomorrow, maybe then would be a good time for a little 'tour'.

He remembered his first wife telling him once that when women felt like ladies they were inclined to act like ladies. That was what Mavid was talking about. Tomorrow he would make the effort to treat Sarah a little more like the Queen of the Underground should be treated, provided she didn't try anything stupid while out and about for the first time.

"Perhaps I could show her around a bit, see how it goes from there," Jareth shrugged, figuring it couldn't really hurt to humor the thought. If she was going to be here forever she should at least see her home after all.

Mavid gave a nod of his head and stood up, ready to turn in for the night, "I will bid you good night if we are through."

Jareth had a sudden thought. "When you go to my parents tomorrow let them know I would like a couple servants capable of being serving ladies."

Mavid frowned slightly but nodded his head regardless. "I will be waking early to deliver the babe to his grandparents. You mentioned you will come to collect him around lunch?"

Jareth nodded his head in approval and Mavid vanished from the room like he hadn't been standing there just a second ago. Feeling a bit more hopeful about the way things were going between him and Sarah, Jareth took one last look at the papers and folders on his desk before vanishing back to his room in the same manor that Mavid had used.

He reappeared in his son's nursery. The babe was sleeping soundly in his crib for the night, sweet and innocent as an angel. Jareth moved over to peer down into the crib, resting his weight against the wooden rail as he reached in, rubbing his son's small back comfortingly. Little Jareth didn't stir from his sleep from the contact, simply letting out a sigh before his breathing returned to normal.

It was all worth it Jareth decided, staring down adoringly at his only child. All the fights with Sarah, his parents, even all the uncertainty just melted away as he moved his hand to gently hold his son's tiny fist. This child was worth everything he had done, all the efforts he had made to trick Sarah into returning him, the battle of the labyrinth. What was more was that Little Jareth was worth everything he had yet to do, like getting Sarah to willingly submit to him. Jareth loved his son in a way that most human parents would scarcely be able to grasp at. There was nothing in the underground more precious than a child of the fae, for they were so rare.

He was well aware of his luck for having his son, especially after his previous attempts with Carrie. She had made sure to deny him the very thing he had wanted more than anything in the world because of her hatred for him. What she had done to him was something unforgivable, but he was still immensely grateful to find she had carried to full term this time rather than seeking to deny his seed life once more. Traditionally in the Underground those who have produced a child onto the fae were treated with the utmost respect and love, but Jareth would be damned before he held anything close to either feeling for his ex. One child didn't make up for the two others he had lost.

Jareth reached into the crib then, needing to hold his son. The babe's eyes fluttered open and he made faint sounds of protest as he was lifted gently out of the crib and against Jareth's chest. The weight of his son in his arms grounded him and cleared his head in a blessed kind of way. Little Jareth settled down into the hold and his eyes drifted shut again as he nodded off once more.

Jareth removed his glove so he could run his fingers over the little blond curls his son possessed, then dipped down to place a kiss against his forehead, his lips lingering like he was afraid he wouldn't get the chance again.

May the Gods show mercy on whoever dared to try to separate him from his son again, because he would show them none.

X

Sarah woke the next morning to the sound of her door opening. She bit back a groan and lifted her head from her pillows, turning her head to the doorway to see Jareth sauntering into the room, a smirk on his despicable face. After what he had done to her last night… for him to look like he was in such a good mood… Sarah wanted to throw something hard, heavy and sharp at him.

She pushed herself up against the pillow, not wanting to face him again lying down. He was dressed as elaborately as ever for the day, in knee-high black boots, a pair of tight grey leggings that left little to the imagination, and a deep blue shirt that buttoned up the front to just where his abdomen met his chest and fitted his torso tightly, the sleeves billowing out in contrast before coming back against his skin at the wrists. Again he was wearing his black gloves and his king's medallion. His hair was styled the same as always. Sarah felt apprehensive about the look on his face. He looked hopeful as well as in good spirits.

Judging by the little bit of light coming through the window and how immensely tired she still felt, it was very early indeed.

"Come on now Sarah, it's time to get up," Jareth informed her, his tone strangely upbeat.

It made Sarah even more apprehensive. He moved over to her with the same brisk stride, stooping down and catching her off guard with a chaste kiss to the forehead before turning away from her and going over to her closet. He was acting very strange indeed. Sarah decided to keep high on her guard. There was no guessing what Jareth was playing at.

There was the sound of fabrics rustling inside her closet. Sarah staid in bed and waited to see what he was up to. When he came back out he had one of her dresses draped over his arm and a pair of shoes in his other hand. He tossed the dress down on the foot of her bed and placed the shoes on the ground, turning back to face her. "Are you going to rise and dress or did you want to stay in here again today?" his tone and demeanor continued to be purely casual.

Sarah felt confused beyond words. "W-what?" she found herself stuttering like a fool. Was he actually talking about letting her out of the room?

Jareth smirked at her confusion and took a seat on the bed next to her. Sarah moved as though she was giving him more room but rather she just didn't want to make any contact with him. He seemed to pick up on this though, his eyes flashing for a second before he regained his composure.

The fact that he was once again in bed with her though made Sarah thankful for the nightgown she had found in her closet the night before. It was a soft and simple white gown that covered her entirely from neck to wrists and then hung down to below her knees. The only frills about it were the lacy loose cuffs of the sleeves and the little pink ribbon at the front of her neck. It was very old fashioned and not at all revealing in its plain bagginess. Despite the frumpy nightwear, however, Jareth's eyes still looked her over like she was some sort of ravishing beauty. It might have been complementing if it wasn't coming from the person she hated most in her whole life.

"I thought perhaps you may like to spend some time exploring your new home today, you did say that you wanted very much to leave this room. I couldn't just let you out and about before because there are parts of my castle that are," he paused, finding the right words, "less attractive than others where if you were to stumble upon them you may have gotten hurt. I have some time today to give you a proper tour if you were still interested." He reached out and took a strand of her hair between his fingers again, caressing it in a gesture that was starting to become familiar to her.

He was actually going to let her out then?! This was the last thing she expected to happen after the other day, but she wasn't about to refuse. As much as she loathed the prospect of spending time with him, a tour of the castle would be nice because then she would stand a better chance of finding a way out of here without getting lost. Maybe after today he would even let her roam around the castle freely and she could pick the best time and way to escape. Sarah found herself grinning at the prospects. "I'd love that."

Jareth smiled back at her, obviously assuming that she just liked the idea of being able to leave the room, or perhaps he was deluding himself thinking that she wanted a tour from him. Let him think whatever he wanted so long as it may lead to her freedom. He stood up and pulled the covers back from Sarah, stepping aside so she could get up from the bed, which she did with haste.

As she reached back to undo the top buttons at the back of her neck Jareth lifted up the dress from the bed and shook it out so the skirts would breathe. "You'll find your underwear in the trunk at the foot of the bed," he informed her.

Sarah finished with the buttons but left the nightgown on as she moved around to the wooden trunk he had indicated. She unclasped the hooks and threw back the lid, only to simply stare in puzzled wonder at the contents. She reached in and pulled out the closest piece of fabric, holding it up to realize that it was a pair of black garter belts to be worn with hose. The rest of the contents were no more promising.

Underwear indeed, this was all lingerie! She actually blushed when she held up one corset looking piece that had two half scoops cut out of the top where the breasts were to go. Jareth had thrown the dress back down and was watching her reactions to the pieces with growing amusement. She shoved the boob-less corset back into the trunk and looked over at him with a huff. "Is this some sort of joke?"

"Amusing yes, a joke no." Jareth came around and she moved out of the way as he stooped down and started rifling though the pieces of underclothes that she would have never dreamed of wearing before. He pulled out a pair of frilly white panties, a white garter belt and pair of matching hose that had lace and ribbons at the top and a stiff looking ivory corset.

Not wanting to wear those, but completely lost as to what she should wear instead, Sarah gathered up the stuff in her arms and, after some fumbling, shifted them over so she would have a free hand for her dress. Jareth simply looked at her.

"I'm going to go change in the bathroom," she informed him, her tone sharp.

Jareth outright laughed at her. "You are not either. Not only because it would be silly of you, but because it would be impossible for you to dress yourself alone. The corset alone you will need help on."

"I can go without the corset," she countered.

"Not if you want to fit into your dress," Jareth laughed. The comment caused her to bristle immediately. Was that some sort of crack about her weight?!

Jareth stepped closer to her and reached out to grip her wrists, his hold was firm but tender as he raised her hands into the air, letting them go there and bending back down to grab the hem of her nightgown. Seeing that he meant to undress her, Sarah dropped her arms back down and backed away automatically. His fists tightened on the hem, forcing her to either stop or trip. His voice was still casual but there was a sharpness to his eyes when he looked up at her. "If you don't wish to dress you can always stay in this room till the next time I have time to show you about, but that could be a while."

Well, if that wasn't a warning…

Sarah reluctantly and hesitantly stepped forward again and raised her arms.

Jareth pulled her gown over her head in one fluid motion and she shivered as the cold air hit her skin. She immediately dropped her arms to hide her breasts from him, squeezing her legs together. His eyes still raked over her body, becoming intense in their stare, but he made no move on her as he took her panties in his hands and stooped down before her, holding them out for her to step into. Seeing no way around it and not wanting to go all day without anything on at all, Sarah placed her hands on his shoulders and stepped into them, trying not to think about it too much as he slid them up her legs. Next his did the same with the garters. This time, however, once they were secure at her hips he leaned forward and placed a chaste kiss against her inner thigh, startling Sarah and making her jump.

It had been nothing but a brush of lips, but the placement and surprise made Sarah's body heat up and she started to blush again. Jareth gave her an innocent glance before continuing to outfit her in the hose and connecting them to the garter. Jareth stood up and grabbed the corset, positioning it before ushering Sarah over to the baseboard of her bed and having her turn around to grip the post rising up from the corner. She stood there with her back to him as he went about lacing the corset. She was a little nervous, the sides of the corset frame were probably about four inches apart in the back, and she had seen in pictures before that when women had worn them they had always met in the back. Jareth sighed behind her and she turned her head slightly to glance back at him. "It's too small isn't it?" she asked, knowing already that it obviously was.

"Breathe out for a moment Sarah," Jareth instructed in a distracted tone.

Sarah did as told, only to gasp and cling to the post like it was her only lifeline when Jareth placed his knee against her lower back and pulled sharply on the laces, closing up the corset and sealing her into the unyielding and unforgiving cavity. He gave a few more sharp jerks on the back and then there was a pause as he fixed the laces into a bow. "There," he grunted.

She. Couldn't. Breathe.

Okay so she could breathe, but barely. The corset was trying to crush her to death. Sarah looked down at herself, despite what a pain that was, and couldn't believe how small her waist looked or how large her breasts now looked. It gave her the body that most girls dreamed of, but she couldn't breathe! It was by far the most uncomfortable thing she had ever worn. "Take it off!" she gasped out, trying to find a breathing rhythm that didn't make her lightheaded.

Jareth had the good sense not to laugh at her distress. "Just try not to think about it Sarah, you'll get used to it in a bit. All the females wear them."

He picked up the dress from the bed and gave it a final shake before slipping it over Sarah's head.

He had been right about the dress not fitting her if it weren't for the corset. Even with the corset it was still tight around the waist and was sewn in a shape that most women didn't posses without the help of a corset. While Jareth set to work on the scores of pearl buttons in the back, Sarah looked down at herself. The gown he had selected was light green in color, very close to the shade of her eyes, and had the kind of billowy skirt that was so common of princess dresses in fairytales. The midsection was tight against her and made her look long and curvy, cupping her breasts to leave the tops utterly and ridiculously exposed. The sleeves were off the shoulder and clung tightly like a second skin from her wrists to her upper arms. Jareth stood back to inspect her and she could see it in his eyes that she looked gorgeous.

Next he led her into the closet and selected a pair of simple emerald earrings and a diamond necklace for her to wear. Sarah couldn't stop looking at herself in the mirror panels. She hardly recognized herself, looking beautiful and lady-like in all her trappings. She was reminded of those porcelain dolls that her grandmother used to collect. She didn't look at all like herself. Jareth gathered her hair up from behind into a haphazard upsweep, securing it with a long-tooth comb that was also decorated with diamonds. When he was done Sarah watched in the mirror as his arms snaked around to the front of her waist to hold her as he placed a kiss against the exposed nape of her neck. Seeing it as it was happening and then feeling his lips brush her skin caused her to shiver all over and his lips curved up in a knowing smile. "You look wonderful," he purred into her ear.

She could see now why they would have to get up so early, with all the time it took to get dressed and all. It hardly seemed worth it though. She looked pretty yes, all dolled up in sixes and sevens, but she couldn't remember the last time she had felt so uncomfortable. "What happened to the clothes I came here in?" she asked.

Jareth shrugged, his lips trailing along the skin from behind her ear down her neck to the base where he placed another kiss against her shoulder. She held back her reaction this time. "They had become rather shabby and are not at all fit for a woman of your standing now. I had them thrown out."

She glared at his reflection in the mirror, only to squeak in surprise when Jareth gave her rear a hard pinch through her skirts. "Don't scowl at me like that Sarah," he chided playfully.

He led her out of the closet and she resisted the urge to rub her bottom as she stepped into the elegant high heels that were the same color as her dress and had large diamonds sewn onto them at the toes. They too were uncomfortable. He really expected her to go around like this? "Isn't there anything more… simple for me to wear?"

"Actually I thought this particular gown would be easier for you to transition into because if its uncomplicated design." His voice was completely serious. "I'll help you with them for now as best I can, but I've already sent for a few serving ladies to be sent here for your services."

Sarah frowned again at that. "Serving ladies?"

"Other females that will help you dress and undress and see to your needs and entertainment when I am not there," Jareth explained.

She didn't like the sound of that. It seemed weird.

"Shall we visit the dining room first to get some breakfast?" Jareth asked her, holding his arm out to her.

She was hungry. Very hungry actually. Sarah nodded her head and took Jareth's arm to be polite. She was still waiting for him to turn around and start being cruel to her again for no reason, or even try to grope her. He wasn't acting like himself at all, not like the him she knew anyway. It was unnerving. He was acting like a person with a shred of actual decency. She wasn't sure how long it would last, but it beat the hell out of him acting nasty towards her. When he unlocked the door to the hallway Sarah let out a sigh of relief she hadn't even known she'd been holding.

X

Jareth was going to never doubt Mavid again. So far things were going a hundred times smoother than normal between him and Sarah. He would have to remember to arrange a treat for his friend, perhaps he would get him a woman of his own to bed. All through breakfast Sarah had sat beside him and although she hadn't spoken any more than to ask about the babe and perhaps answer a question or comment he made her company had been pleasant.

Her voice and demeanor continued to be sharp around him and she was obviously tense, but he was enjoying the overall progress too much to let it really get to him. Whether or not she acted like a lady yet she certainly looked like one. For all her complaints and fidgeting with her attire she looked good enough to ravish in all the best ways. He kept resisting the urge to reach out and take the comb he had placed in her hair out so he could see it setting freely in its mahogany waves over her shoulders and cleavage, something else he found himself looking at at every opportunity. Each time she caught him staring she gave him a sour look, to which he would simply smirk.

After breakfast he had led her through most of the castle, showing her the areas she was allowed in like the library and the sitting rooms. He took care not to lead her close to any of the exits though. He did show her to his study though but did not open the door. He wanted her to know where it was but also that she wasn't allowed in there without his say-so.

By the time they made it back to the deserted throne room Sarah looked completely winded. She was clutching her chest and trying to breathe through the corset and looking like she had just run a marathon despite the fact that Jareth had been sure to go slow and steady through the castle, avoiding as many stairs as he was able. Jareth offered her the throne so that she could sit down before she passed out. Sarah took his offering without hesitation, fidgeting with her corset again before sinking down into the seat. "My god these things are immoral. Can't you have them outlawed?" she whined.

Jareth smiled at that. As if he would want to even if he could. "I'm afraid that that is something outside my power. They do have their strong points as well as their down falls though too," he smirked, blatantly staring at her now. He couldn't help but appreciate the view, the corset pushing her breasts up and apart so they looked perfectly round and alluring.

She shot him another glare.

Jareth resisted the urge to take her where she sat.

Sarah lifted her feet up and kicked her shoes off, sending them halfway across the room to Jareth's surprise. "My feet feel like they're about to fall off! I don't know how the hell you can put up with wearing boots around here like you do."

Jareth cringed at her cursing. She certainly didn't act like a lady. Just kicking her shoes off like that would have caused several of the courtiers he knew to go so far as to faint from the absurdness of it. "Language, Sarah," he warned her.

She looked up at him in complete confusion, like she hadn't even realized he had said that. "What? Oh… you curse!" she defended.

"When you are a king, or a man for that matter, than you will be allowed to as well."

That earned him another glare.

"Ladies don't curse Sarah, especially queens. Now collect your shoes." His tone was sharp, making it clear to her that such matters were not up for debate.

"So men can curse but not women?" she asked, her tone snide.

She was getting ready to challenge him on this; he could see it in her eyes and hear it in her tone. He would just nip it in the bud right now. Jareth moved over to stand before her, placing his hands on the arm rests on either sides of her before leaning down close to her. She leaned back, uncertainty and fear on her face, but no surprise anymore as he got up in her face. He reached out and took her chin between his thumb and forefinger, forcing her to look back at him when she turned away. Now that he forced her to meet his eyes she did so with anger and defiance. "Yes Sarah that is the way of things. In fact there are many things I can do as a male that you would not be allowed to. This is not your precious Aboveground Sarah, a fact you seem to have difficulty understanding despite the fact that everything down here is sorely different from your old life. If you were to open your eyes enough to look around and see that things could be so much easier on you, you may even come to enjoy your life down here. There are all too many in worse positions than you, you selfish little-

Jareth cut himself off before he could lose his temper and turned away from Sarah. The last thing he wanted right now was to lose it and start right back at square one with her.

Why did she have to be so difficult though? Jareth stepped over to where her shoes lay on the stone floor, stooping down to pick them up once more before carrying them back over to her. Now she looked surprised. He ignored her expression as he placed them on the floor in front of her. "Now put them back on," he said, his voice still firm from before.

Sarah didn't challenge him for once. After a long pause she stuck her foot out into the shoe, then the other one, wiggling them on but remaining seated. When they were back on she dropped her skirts over her feet as if hiding the evidence that she had actually listened to him. Jareth gave her a nod of approval but she refused to acknowledge him. Let her be that way then, she was listening to him that was what mattered.

Jareth looked over at the clock that hung on the wall of the throne room. He would need to go collect his son soon. He wondered if maybe he should deposit her back into her room or allow her to roam about. He didn't like the thought of both him and Mavid being away from the castle while she stayed behind, but he was sure if he tried to take her back to her room she would fight him. He could just imagine bringing her with him. No she certainly wasn't ready for anything like that yet. Maybe he could find something to entertain her while he was away…

"Sarah," he said, recapturing her attention, "I don't suppose you've ever seen a goblin play before have you?"

X

Sarah was speechless as she sat on the throne.

Jareth had explained to her that he was going to collect Toby from his parents (don't get her started on how hard that had mind-fucked her to hear that Jareth had parents; for some reason she had never thought about how he had come into being, but had pictured something along the lines of him crawling out from under a large rock) and then called a goblin named Apron to the throne room. She wasn't entirely sure what was going on but 'goblin play' seemed to translate to a goblin going on and on about a story that didn't make sense either plot-wise or even sensibly so while he tumbled all over himself. He had told her right after Jareth had left the room that the play he was doing was an old goblin favorite called 'The Play About a Goblin Who Fell into a Bucket of Something or Other and Then Oh! What Happened Next I Can't Remember but You Know the Piece Because It's So Famous Everybody Knows It'.

He was a goblin of medium height, gnarled looking like all the others with a nose that was over a foot long and pointed and a mad bushel of black hair on his head that was currently covered up by a helmet. His outfit was made up of everything from armor to pots and pans to a tin of peas.

He took a pork chop out of his pocket suddenly and Sarah had to move quickly to avoid getting hit in the head when he threw it at her for no reason what so ever. "The bucket was filled with a ooze that was green and had chunks of either meat or perhaps feces floating about in it!" he continued. "After going for a relaxing swim I-

She had heard enough for a lifetime, holding up her hand to make him stop. "Enough! Do you know any actual plays?" she asked, like Romeo and Juliet, or A Streetcar Named Desire even?"

Apron scowled at her, obviously offended as he raised his head high, "I'll have you know that I am the best loved juve-lead in the goblin theatrical world, one of two goblins participating. I am the lead in plays on such important nights as Toe-Feast Night and All Owl's Night! And those are just a few of my many talents and importance's."

Sarah let out an agitated sigh. This was maddening. Did Jareth really put up with this nonsense? No wonder he was always so tightly wound, or maybe this was what made him so crazy in the first place. Sarah looked around the room. There was nobody else around but them two. Jareth had shown her around the castle a little, but it had far from escaped her that he hadn't shown her any usable exits. Sarah wasn't sure when he would be back. She couldn't go without Toby, he was her responsibility after all, and she had promised to take care of and protect him. She could still find out where the exits were for later though. "Hey Apron," she smiled pleasantly, "Would you like to do me a favor?"

He let out a snort. "Absolutely not! Why would I do something for you when I could not?"

Jareth really dealt with this? "I'm the queen," she prompted, thinking maybe he just didn't know.

"So then order someone to do it for you."

Sarah held back a growl of frustration. "I'll order you to do it for me," she snapped.

He let out another snort and crossed his arms over his chest. "If you're queen then you can order someone to do it for me."

Her growl escaped her. "Can you just show me the way out of here!?" she shouted, at the end of her patience with this one.

Apron raised one of the wrinkles above his eye. "What will I get for it?"

So that was how he wanted to play it.

Sarah lifted her skirts up a couple inches, "I'll give you my shoes, they have diamonds on them." Never mind the fact that she'd be happy to get rid of them.

Apron observed them for a moment before his face contorted into something of a grimace. "What do I look like, a dwarf? Shiny stones are so ugly. Do you have anything worth my time, like karbobs?"

"Karbobs?"

The goblin reached under one of the pork chops that was hanging off a belt between his thighs and with a grunt pulled out a wart-like orb the size of a large grape. "Delicious karbobs! They are growths on the body around the armpits, stomach rolls, and near the groin. The very best thing to eat!"

Sarah let out a scream before she could help herself and shot up from the throne, wanting the disgusting thing away from her so much that she kicked without even thinking. Apron let out a _woof_ noise and fell onto his back, the growth flying out of his hand to land somewhere in the room. "That is it!" Sarah screamed, just this side of hysterically. "I'm not asking you for this! Either you show me the way out of here in the next five seconds or I'm going to… to… to give you so many jewels to wear that you'll glow like the sun whenever the light hits you!"

To her it seemed like the worst threat she had ever made, the terrified look on Apron's face told her it was effective though. "Please your highness no!" he howled.

"The next five seconds!" she repeated, caring nothing for his pleas of mercy.

Apron looked around like he was close to full out panic. "Ok!" he screeched, getting up from the floor and running at full speed.

Sarah screamed too when he suddenly changed direction and jumped out of the window, all in under five seconds!

Sarah ran over to the window, convinced that she had just inadvertently caused the death of an innocent goblin. She felt her jaw drop when she looked out the window and saw that Apron had already hit the ground that was about ten stories down and was running away from the castle at full speed, not stopping for no one or nothing as he continued to run and scream hysterically.

"What are you doing?"

At the familiar tone Sarah slammed the glass panes shut on the window and turned around quickly to see Jareth and the other male fae both standing in the room with her. Jareth had Toby in his arms. He was looking at her suspiciously. "I'm not even sure," Sarah said truthfully, stepping away from the window.

Jareth and the other male exchanged looks.

X

"He is such a delight Jareth!'' his mother cooed in approval as she held the babe in her arms. Even his father was looking down at the babe with some level of adoration.

Jareth held out his arms impatiently for his son. He had had no doubts that his parents would love his son. He only hoped it would go over half as nicely when they eventually met Sarah. Mavid came walking up the hall with a couple large bags in one arm, the babe's playthings and blankets and such. The wet nurse walked behind him, her head down in shame. Jareth noticed that her hair was in an extremely loose ponytail so that the sides would still fall forward to hide her face. She glanced up at him very briefly and although he hadn't gotten a good look, he could see a scar that ran from her cheekbone to her chin. Scars were very ugly in the eyes of the fae. She was practically deformed now and would be lucky to ever find a husband, although she would have already had a truly hard time of it since she had gotten pregnant and lost a child all out of wedlock. It worked out fine for him though, giving him a feeding nurse out of her misfortune and bad choices. Mavid saw that Jareth had seen the woman's scars and smirked superiorly.

His mother finally transferred Little Jareth over to him and Jareth immediately started bouncing the babe against his hip, kissing his little cheek. The babe cooed and wrapped his arms around Jareth's neck so he could rest against his shoulder. His eyes were drooping. "Did he not get a nap?" Jareth asked.

"He just woke up from his nap," his father shrugged. "Just give him a moment to come around."

Kaleen stepped forward to kiss her grandson's back and exposed cheek once more. "I expect another visit from you **both** ," she gave Jareth a pointed look, "Before the week is out. And I expect to meet with your new wife no later than in two underground weeks. That should give her plenty of time to have become fully adjusted to her life here as well as her role as your bride."

Jareth fixed his mother with another pointed look. "We shall see."

"It's not something that's up for debate actually," his father intervened. Hamold stepped forward and took his arm around Jareth's shoulders, leading him away from everyone else (Little Jareth excluded) into a little alcove for a little privacy. "I have followed your lead my son. I went to the counsel."

Jareth pegged his father with an accusing glare. "What?"

"I contested whether this girl of yours is actually fit to be queen. They listened."

Jareth bit back the urge to attack his own father. How could he have gone behind his back like this?!

Hamold went on. "It was agreed that you will have two weeks in which to present to both them and your mother and I a girl that is charming, sophisticated, and mindful of her duties to her kingdom and the fae; a girl worthy of being your queen. Do this and your mother is prepared to hold a ball in her honor the very next night."

Jareth bristled all over. "No one is taking Sarah from me!"

His father raised a disapproving eyebrow at his son's behavior. "I am aware that the counsel already gave you leave to keep her here in the underground. If you are not able to present us with a queen in two weeks you may still keep your little plaything, but only as a servant. She will at best be a bed warmer for you, but your marriage will be annulled and you will have to come up with a more deserving wife."

Jareth felt a little calmer knowing that they couldn't physically take her away from him, but he had no intention of marrying another. Sarah was his wife. She was smart and resourceful and spirited and everything the labyrinth and he himself needed in a bride. She was still very rough around the edges though (what an understatement) but she could be smoothed out. He needed more time though.

He said as much and his father simply shook his head. "The counsel has given you two weeks. There is nothing I can do to change that. If you really wish to keep this girl as your bride I suggest you start making her behave and listen to you in whatever way you need to." The king smoothed down the front of his red robes, his face returning to its normal composed self. It was a sign that he was done with the conversation.

"I took the liberty of finding two serving females for you at Mavid's request. They are preparing themselves now and will arrive in your kingdom by late tonight."

Jareth nodded his head.

"Jareth, these aren't normal serving girls though," his father warned him.

Jareth frowned at that. "What do you mean?"

"They are your distant cousins, the daughter of your mother's stepbrother's cousin and the daughter of my half sister. I thought considering the circumstances you would want that female of yours to be around well born and bred females of the family. Take some hints and all that. I expect you to treat your cousins with a measure of respect though."

Jareth wanted to protest at first. He didn't want his cousins staying with him and looking after his new wife. On the other hand though they would be able to better teach Sarah what is right and wrong for a lady to do as well as continue to be friends with her when she came out to the fae world as his queen. Jareth nodded his head in defeat. What else could he do?

Hamold nodded his head and walked with Jareth back to the others.

Mavid looked up as Jareth approached, picking the bags back up from where he had set them down on the floor. "We're leaving," Jareth snapped, his tone much sharper than he had meant for it to come out. He had a lot on his mind now and was fuming over his father's backhanded tactics to try to back him into a corner.

Mavid nodded and, with the wet nurse following behind, they all vanished from his parent's castle, reappearing in the halls of his own castle. Tallia moved forward to take the baby from Jareth, but he waved her off. "Go back to your rooms or something," he huffed, wanting more time with his son, "I will call for you when you are needed."

She nodded her head and eagerly shuffled off down the hall.

Jareth and Mavid turned and headed in the other direction.

"How did your morning go?" Mavid asked, pulling Jareth's thoughts away from his current predicament.

"Quite a bit better actually," Jareth nodded. He glanced over at his friend with a smirk. "I was thinking earlier that maybe I'd arrange for a female for you as a reward."

Mavid's brow shot up but his initial smirk remained. He gave a nonchalant shrug. "You know my type," was all he said.

Being scarred and a servant like he was, Mavid wasn't destined to ever marry. He seemed to have no problems, however, either finding women to bed or being given women to bed. Such was the way of things and Mavid accepted it with ease. Jareth couldn't help but wish that Sarah could be the same way a bit more.

"I did as you said and she's been acting a lot better. I could hardly recognize her when she put on her dress. She looks so much like the queen she is meant to be that I can't even believe it," Jareth mentioned with pride as they walked.

The sound of a woman's scream caused them both to pause before both Jareth and Mavid broke into a full out run down the hall, Little Jareth squealing with glee in his father's arms. They burst through the open entrance of the throne room and Jareth immediately spotted Sarah. She was at the window and at first he thought that she was about to fall, but then saw that she was actually leaning out of it watching something enough that she was just about bent over double in a very undignified manner. Her shoes were kicked off again as though she had lost them on her way from the throne to the window. The little goblin he had left her with was nowhere in sight.

"What are you doing?" Jareth demanded, trying to hold onto his temper. Hadn't he just told Mavid about how much better she was doing already?

Sarah slammed the panes on the window shut in her startle like a child who had just been caught doing something naughty and spun around to face them. Her eyes were wide as she looked over each of them, but not in terror so much as stunned surprise, like she had just witness something totally bizarre. "I'm not even sure," she gasped out.

Mavid sent Jareth a look like he was asking 'this is the girl you couldn't recognize?' and it made Jareth want to start raving all over again in anger.

"We heard a scream," Jareth snapped at her, hoping for a reasonable explanation to excuse her behavior.

Sarah looked over her shoulder at the window. Jareth handed his son over to Mavid and stalked over to the window. Sarah moved out of his way before he had to push her out of it and he threw the windows open, looking down at his kingdom but seeing nothing out of the ordinary. He turned back to Sarah to peg her with a look of distrust.

She met his stare head on. "That goblin you left me with jumped out the window, it startled me is all! But he kept running when he hit the ground."

Ah, the thing must have finished his play. It was a regular thing for goblins to try at least one attempt to kill themselves after each play, but very rarely did they ever succeed because they were notorious for fouling up most everything they tried to accomplish.

Jareth looked down at her shoes discarded on the ground. Sarah looked down and blushed when she saw what he was staring at. "They just fell off," she mumbled, her voice not at all convincing.

"Well then put them back on," Jareth snapped.

Sarah looked over at Mavid and Jareth wasn't sure if she was looking for some support or because she was embarrassed that he was bossing her around like this in front of someone else. He didn't care either way. Mavid was beyond used to it and she would find no support there.

Sarah shot Jareth a defiant look but marched over to where her shoes lay on the stone. To Jareth's complete mortification and Mavid's stunned amusement, Sarah plopped down onto the ground in a huff and moved all her skirts back to expose a good amount of her legs before grabbing her shoes and kicking her feet into them to show her utter annoyance and anger.

"Mavid leave!' Jareth snapped, not wanting the male to see more of his wife than he already had. She had bunched the skirts up to just above her knees for crying out loud!

Mavid bit back a smile and turned immediately and exited the room with Little Jareth in his arms.

Sarah looked up in dismay as she watched him leave, turning her head to give Jareth an angry glare from where she sat. "I wanted to see Toby!" she protested.

Jareth gripped his head in his hands as he was struck with a headache and leaned back against the wall to steady himself. Two weeks! That was all he had was two weeks. What would happen if she sat down on the floor and pulled a stunt like that in front of the counsel? Or worse, in front of his mother!?

Jareth opened his eyes slowly and winced to see she was still sitting on the ground with her skirts pulled up, her legs and hose showing for the world to see. She continued to glare at him like she was completely in the right to be upset with him. Which was funny since right now he would be in the right to go over and drag her to her feet by her hair.

Jareth stomped over to Sarah and she flinched away from him in fear when he stooped down and gripped her skirts, pulling them roughly back down to her ankles. "You are a complete embarrassment!"

She rested her fists against her hips in her own anger. "Me?" she snapped.

"Yes you!" he gripped her under her arms before she could pull back and forced her to her feet. She teetered for a moment like her head had spun. "Acting like some drunken prostitute!"

She looked up at him with outraged confusion now. "A what?!"

"You just sat down on the floor and showed Mavid almost the entirety of your legs!" Jareth growled out, grabbing the front of her dress, his fingers right against her pushed up breasts, and pulling her closer to him till he was close enough to her face that he could have kissed her if he had half a mind. His eyes were intense and dangerous again as he glared at her. "I am the only male allowed to see your body Sarah," he warned her in a low and cold whisper. "Don't you ever forget that."

"My legs?" Sarah asked in disbelief. "You make me wear corsets that show off three- fourths of my breasts and call me a prostitute for a little bit of knee?!" she shoved against his chest and his grip on her bodice slipped, allowing her to back away from him a couple steps. "Fuck you!" she spat.

That did it! She was the most unlady-like woman he had ever met. Undressing at every chance she got, screaming like a banshee, defying his orders, and cursing like a sailor. She was absolutely horrid! She was going to cost him everything if she didn't wise up. "That's not a bad suggestion," he growled back at her, advancing on her with the intent to extract the offer she had just made. He would find better uses for her mouth if she could only think to use it to swear at him. She had to learn sometime, and it just so happened that time was short.

X

[The goblin Apron is not actually mine he is Brian Froud and Terry Jones's and more information can be found on him in their book The Goblin Companion (a field guide to goblins of the labyrinth) which is an awesome book btw.]


	7. Chapter 7

[Thanks once more for all the reviews, I know I sound like a broken record with this, but I honestly do appreciate you all taking the time.

Beta for this chapter is The Art Of Suicide, whom does so much for me and my sanity I swear.]

Sarah's eyes got wide but she held her ground, whether by choice or because she was too scared to move- was impossible to tell. Jareth advanced on her like a bat out of hell, but had no choice but to either stop or run her over when he reached her. Normally when this happened, Sarah would go with her first instincts to either run or cower from his onslaught, but this time she didn't. She kept her shoulders square and her head high bravely, the only testament to her fear of him being that she was the slightest bit weak in the knees. On the plus side, the corset wasn't a problem for her anymore because, for one thing, it forced her to keep her back straight, and for another, she'd stopped breathing when she had braced herself for the worst.

Jareth stood in front of her, towering over her with a look of warning on his face that a blind man wouldn't have missed. The air around him was considerably hotter with his rage and Sarah felt her head swim again from both her emotions and the lack of air. She wasn't the fainting type, but the corset made it harder for her.

She wasn't going to just back down this time. She couldn't. She already knew what would happen if she showed even the slightest bit of fear or submission to him; he would once more take the opening to dominate and violate her, using his body as a weapon as well as a teaching object to try to show her just what her role really was here.

Before she would have been down on the stone floor by now and he would have already been tearing at her clothes. The fact that he simply stood there, a mere inch away from her body, glaring down at her like he wanted to strangle her seemed to be a sign of improvement, as far as she was concerned. Granted a small one but what else did she have to hope for?

Jareth's eyes raked over her body, alerting her that she was right about her suspicions as to where this was headed if he had any say in it. His voice when he spoke was both husky and full of threat, "Turn around, Sarah."

Turn her back on the likes of him?! She almost wanted to laugh. She cleared her throat, making sure that her voice could be clear when she spoke. "No."

The answer was simple, her tone firm, unafraid despite her feelings.

Jareth's eyes narrowed dangerously into little more than slits and his lips drew thin in his fury. It was a glare capable of freezing water with its coldness.

Sarah straightened her spine a little more. "I won't turn around. I won't cower before the likes of you. You are nothing but a bully, Goblin King. A pompous arrogant jackass that was never told no as a child. This may be 'your world' but I'm not from here and I don't belong here. This world is beneath me." She glared up at him, "And so are you."

She had no idea where all her newfound courage came from. Yes, she had wanted to stand up to him, but to tell him off like that…

Any feelings of triumph she might have felt for her tirade left in a hurry at the way Jareth was staring at her now. He didn't look angry anymore. Far from happy, so very far, but not as furious as he had been before her reckless little speech. His emotion was blank, his eyes barely seeing her even though he was looking right at her. His hands were slack at his sides but his body was still tense from the recent fury he had held. His expression or body language wasn't directly frightening, but for reasons she didn't fully understand a new feeling of dread washed over Sarah as she watched and waited for Jareth to react. He looked like a man who had just lost something.

All of Sarah's hairs stood on end suddenly and her skin broke out in harsh goose bumps. Only one thought raced through her head.

' _ **Run.'**_

She knew now what phrase summed up Jareth's current stance; it was the calm before the storm.

In less than a second, Jareth's eyes regained focus, even more severe than she had ever seen them before, and his body language was that of pure and raw fury, all aimed at her. She had truly never been so scared in her life and she started shaking immediately like she had just been caught in a blizzard. She really felt for a moment like she was staring her death in the face, and it was looking back at her through mixed-colored eyes.

He reached out quick as lightning and gripped her wrist in a bone-crushing hold, causing her to cry out- which he ignored- as he pulled her against him and the room spun around them at a dizzying rate till everything blurred together. When they stopped spinning, Sarah felt truly in danger of fainting and when her legs gave out Jareth made no move to hold her up, allowing her to drop roughly to the stone ground.

Sarah waited for a few seconds as the dark spots of her vision vanished before looking at her surroundings. She felt like she would vomit at the sight and was thankful she was already sitting down or she would have fainted, no two ways about it. The room they were in was dark, damp, and dirty with dusty fixtures. The chilled air added to the goose bumps already on her skin. It was a fairly large room, full of a lot of things she didn't know the purpose of. It was the things she saw that she did know the purpose of that scared her most… at first.

The first thing she recognized was the large medieval-looking rack that was pushed up against one corner of the room, worn and bloody restraints dangling from all four corners. She could also identify a tool called a "heretic's fork" that was like a collar to be worn around the throat, but with a barb built facing toward the neck to cut off the airways enough to keep prisoners from screaming no matter how much pain they were in lest the device rip into their esophagus. There was also a large assortment of long iron pinchers, pokers, and things with odd shaped contraptions on the ends of them that looked very abhorrent. In the corner was an enormous dome that looked like… good God!

Was that an actual iron maiden?!

This didn't even include the numerous other restraints placed at all heights around the walls or hanging from the ceiling.

Sarah looked up at Jareth like he had just instilled the fear of God into her. This was a torture chamber.

"Sarah," Jareth said, his voice strained like he was trying to keep it under control and failing. It sent another wave of fear through her. "Apologize to me now –a real apology –and I'll forgive you for the grave insults you have slandered me with." His voice dropped to barely above a whisper, "If you don't, however, you _will_ be introduced to punishments befitting such an offense."

He certainly left her no room for doubt. She looked at her surroundings dismally, already knowing what she would choose and hating herself for being so weak. She was fooling herself in thinking that she could have stood her ground against Jareth, who she was inevitably no match for. It had been far easier to play brave when she hadn't been staring at such barbaric devices that existed solely to exact harsh and cruel punishment. Looking around at her surroundings, she did indeed feel sorry, but not for what she had said. More for the outcome than anything else.

"I'm waiting, Sarah," Jareth hissed, his voice trailing over her skin like a snake.

Sarah closed her eyes and tried to push back her outrage at the injustice of it all as she summoned all her acting abilities. When she turned her head to Jareth, still sitting on the floor, she tried to focus as much submission and fear into her look as possible. It was considerably difficult to feign regret. Fear and sorrow? Those were easy. "I- I'm sorry," she said, her voice trembling as much as her body. "I'm s-sorry I s-said those things to you." She swallowed down her pride for the fear of what pain awaited her if she didn't. "I didn't mean them, Jareth."

His eyes were still as cold as his stance as he regarded her on the ground next to him. One of his brows lifted, "Are you going to behave yourself from now on? I promise you that although Mavid is far more familiar with this room I do know the purpose of each of these tools and how to use them. I can, for instance, be quite skilled with a riding crop."

Sarah nodded her head weakly for fear of what her voice would sound like if she answered. When Jareth's expression didn't soften in the least she timidly reached out and touched his leg, hoping the willing contact might appease him since she was careful not to touch him any other time. Sarah was desperate to get out of this room. Surely this was one of the "less attractive" places in the castle he hadn't shown her on the tour. When he made no move to either encourage or kick her off she scooted closer to him, her skirts shifting under her uncomfortably on the dirty concrete and stone. She made to stand up, but as soon as she rose slightly from her ankles Jareth's body tensed in warning and she stayed down, moving her body up against his leg meekly as she wrapped one arm around so her hand rested on his upper thigh while her other hand stayed on his boot. She felt immensely uncomfortable with such an intimate yet humiliating position but when she glanced up again Jareth's expression towards her was considerably softer. She had done the right thing for once.

She didn't pull back or flinch when Jareth reached down to touch her face, his fingers skimming over her cheek as his anger steadily seemed to ebb away. "You can make it so hard," he sighed, the anger from before having faded away. Sarah wasn't sure he was even really speaking to her. With another sigh, Jareth held his hand out for her to take.

She reached out for it instantly.

X

She was trembling all over as she rose to her feet and her skirts were dirty from the floors. Jareth held her hand firmly so she didn't fall. Once she was to her feet he wrapped his arms around her smaller frame and transported the both of them from the chamber back to the throne room. Once again Sarah's body had sagged against his and she took in shallow breaths quickly like she was trying not to pass out. Corsets looked wonderful on women but they were a nuisance at times.

The "torture chamber" was barely more than an out of use dungeon that had been made into a closet. There had been dust on everything down there, a clear indicator that it hadn't been used in a long time. Most of it was stuff that had been confiscated from goblin households and stashed down there for safe keeping. The unused dungeon had seemed like a good spot for it. Although it was true that he and Mavid knew what each item down there was and its function, he had been lying about Mavid using any of it. Mavid had his own tools in his room for when he needed them. He wasn't needed for those kinds of services often so having a room for such things didn't make sense.

Jareth had been bluffing the entire time about using anything down there on Sarah. No matter how badly she insulted and embarrassed him he wouldn't punish her like that. If push had come to shove he would have had to back down and figure out some way to save face. Thankfully she hadn't called his bluff, a move only a fool would have made on the off chance that he had in fact been bluffing. It showed the girl wasn't a complete fool. If there was one quality he could admire in a woman it was the drive for survival and self-preservation, traits that his Sarah had in spades. He had accomplished his goal for taking her down there though, judging by the way she shivered still and the look on her face she was terrified enough to start behaving herself again. She was always better towards him for at least a while following reprimand. All she needed was a firm hand to show her how to behave.

All wasn't lost.

He had given her several chances to choose love as her mentor, to be the force driving her toward status she was meant for. Since she had refused love then pain and terror could be just as effective tutors. She would learn to show him respect, and in time that would turn to genuine admiration, perhaps even love.

Sarah let out a gasp when he pulled her up hard against his body. "Just remember that you gave me your word that you would behave for now on," he warned her sharply before pressing his lips down hard against hers. Her first response was to tense and resist him, but she quickly stopped that when he grazed his teeth over her bottom lip in warning. She didn't wrap her arms around him, letting them hang down at her sides, but she did open her mouth some so that he could kiss her the way he wanted.

He would have her ready to present to the council and his parents in two weeks come hell or high water! She was his wife. It was high time she started acting like it. Jareth pulled back from her, taking in her sweet face and innocent features. Her eyes were still closed from the kiss. Unable to see the strength and determination in those orbs made her look just as innocent as she had been when she'd first met him, pining after a wished away baby with fantasies of heroism on her mind to win him back. Funny how much someone could change in such a short time. "Tell me who I am to you, Sarah," he demanded, wanting to hear her acknowledge it.

Sarah's eyes opened and although there was fear and dread in there, he could still see her fire. Sometimes he kind of liked it when she defied him, in a small way. It was refreshing and intoxicating at the same time. She just tended to take it too far and needed to learn that there was a time and a place, as well as certain things, that she just wasn't meant to fight him on.

Jareth dipped back down and kissed her again, not as hard and not nearly as long, but still a firm and thorough one. "Tell me I'm your husband and your king," he commanded for the last time.

She shuddered in his arms and looked down at the floor off to the side. "You're my-"

He gripped her chin, forcing her to look at him when she said it. "Do not look away when you address me."

Sarah's eyebrows furrowed and he was sure for a moment that she would start cussing at him again. Now would not be the time. "You're my k- king," she said finally, her voice hushed, "and my husband."

"That's right," Jareth agreed arrogantly. "And as both, you would do well to mind me when I tell you to do something. Wouldn't you agree?"

She continued to meet his eyes but stayed silent, her jaw tight.

He was pushing her, he knew that. He didn't care. "Answer me, Sarah. Wouldn't you agree?"

"Yes," she bit out tightly.

"I'm glad you finally understand." He let go of her chin and she immediately turned her head away. He then unwrapped his arms from her, releasing her from his hold. "Now if you are good for the rest of the day, after supper you may spend some time with Little Jareth."

Sarah looked at him in confusion and disgust before it dawned on her what the hell he actually meant by "Little Jareth". Jareth had forgotten that she still insisted on calling his son "Toby". Like everything else, she would just have to get used to his way. He didn't want her going around calling his son by the name that his wretched ex-wife chose for him in the Aboveground. They were in the Underground now; his name was Jareth.

"I want to see him now," she pouted, albeit a tad meekly.

"I said after supper, and only if you behave yourself for the rest of the day. I have matters to discuss with Mavid in regards to the kingdom so you'll have to entertain yourself till then. You may go read in the library, if you want, or go to anywhere else in the castle that I showed you earlier."

"If you're going to be busy with work then why can't I see Toby?" she questioned him, frowning once more.

"Do not call him by that name again in my presence, are we clear!" Jareth snapped at her, his tone harsh.

Sarah flinched back and nodded her head, obviously surprised and intimidated by his outburst.

"I already told you after supper. Drop the matter." His face was completely closed off to show he was serious.

Sarah looked down at the ground in defeat.

Jareth leaned down and gave her a kiss on the forehead before vanishing from the room, back to his study where he knew Mavid would be waiting for him.

X

"Karen, where were you last night?"

Karen looked up from the dishes and turned to her husband.

Roger and she had barely spoken since the night she had gone to the counsel, and if they had it was just to argue. Roger wasn't a fool. He could tell that there was something up with her demeanor. He was sure that she knew more than she was saying, and like it would do to any father with a lost daughter, it tore him apart.

She felt terrible for it, but she couldn't bring herself to tell him the complete truth. Even if he did believe her, nothing good would come of it. He would just see that it was all her fault and then she would lose him forever. She had just lost her son and stepdaughter; she didn't want to lose her husband, too. She wasn't giving up on her kids though, she was still intent on getting them both back from Jareth. If the council wouldn't help her she would have to find another way.

Last night, she'd been working on that "other way" while Roger had been sleeping. Apparently, he hadn't been sleeping the whole time.

She knew she should be trying harder to play her part as the grief-stricken mother, but she wasn't ready to commit to it yet and believe that her children were completely lost to her. "What are you talking about?" she asked him, trying to play off his suspicions like they were nothing.

He glared across the kitchen at her. "Don't treat me like I'm a simpleton. I want to know where you were. You were gone for about half an hour."

She hated lying to him. It absolutely made her ache inside. But right now, she knew that it was completely necessary. She dried her hands off on her skirt and stepped over to Roger, stopping just a foot or so in front of him. If her years with Jareth had taught her anything, it was how to abase herself to achieve what she wanted. Right now, what she wanted was for Roger to give her the room she needed to carry out her plans.

She allowed tears to come to her eyes and wrapped her arms around herself, as though she was actually holding herself together that way. "I'm sorry I kept it from you Roger, but I haven't been handling this whole thing on my own. I didn't want to upset you any more than you already are. I contacted the counselor at Sarah's school and have been meeting with her for scheduled sessions to talk about how I've been feeling since that night." She looked up at Roger, meeting his eyes as she bold face lied to him. "I haven't been showing just how much this has been tearing me apart because I know you've been hurting enough as it is without heaping on my problems. I've felt so lost since then. I don't feel like myself at all. I have another meeting with her tonight. I'm so sorry I didn't tell you any of this," she sobbed, her hands flying to cover her face as she cried.

"The school counselor has been meeting with you so late at night?"

Karen nodded her head. "She's a very sweet and understanding woman and because of her busy schedule she's been able to make time for me but not till later at night, usually. I meet her at the Wendy's on Fifth Ave for coffee and to talk with her since it's about the only place open so late."

After a pregnant pause Karen felt Roger's gentle hands reach out to rest on her shoulders and although she loathed herself for it, she knew he believed her. "Did you really think you couldn't come to me with this?" he asked, his voice hurt.

She wiped her tears away and looked up at him once more.

"Karen, you are my wife. You can share anything with me. I'm glad that she's been so willing to be there for you, but don't you know that I was here for you the whole time? That maybe I needed you as well? If you can't be honest with me then how can we trust each other? I've been out of my mind thinking that you were keeping something from me, something big having to do with the kids. I never guessed that it was something like this, though. If I had known I wouldn't have been acting so terrible to you."

She couldn't help but genially smile through her tears. This was what marriage was, how it had been initially between her and Jareth. She had lost this kind of union with him long ago. She wasn't about to let it slip away yet again with Roger. He was so loving and trusting, a wonderful husband and father. At least, he had been a wonderful father.

Karen went into his arms and he embraced her readily, holding her to him as more guilty tears spilled down her cheeks. He didn't deserve any of this. She would right her wrongs for his sake if for nothing else.

"I love you so much, Roger," she whispered against the skin of his neck. He turned his head to place a kiss against hers in response. "I'm going to be more honest with you for now on about how I feel," she fibbed, "But I'd still like to continue meeting on my own with Sarah's counselor. She's been such a help to me and it's nice to have another woman to talk to about some of it, you know? Maybe you should think about finding counseling as well. It might be good for you to have someone to talk to who's not as close to the situation as well."

Roger was quiet for a moment while he continued to hold her. "I'll think about it, Darling. In the meantime, I don't mind if you keep up your counseling sessions." He pulled back from the embrace enough to face her, running his fingers over her cheek. "Just please remember that I'm here too."

She nodded her head in understanding and agreement. "Absolutely." She leaned in and kissed him with all the love she could muster.

Tonight, she would contact an old friend from the Underground.

X

Sarah sighed in relief when a goblin came and found her in the library and let her know that supper was about to be served in the dining hall. She had spent half the day in her room taking a nap but gave that up when the corset got too uncomfortable to sleep in and she wasn't able to get out of it by herself. She had then gotten up and gone to the library to try to kill some more time. She'd browsed through a few books on the human race, but that, too, was abandoned after seeing a medical book written by a goblin named Crusiog J. Blah that insisted that the reproductive organs of the female were located in the throat. After that, she'd located a piece of charcoal and some blank scrolls to draw on and had been doodling for the last hour and a half.

She would have preferred to go exploring and try to locate some exits, but with the way her feet felt in her shoes she just couldn't stand the idea. They already felt like they were on fire and as much as she wanted to take them off she didn't have the courage to chance Jareth popping in on her unexpectedly and seeing. She didn't want to get yelled at and threatened anymore today.

She threw down her stuff on a side table and got up to follow the little goblin to the dining hall, practically limping along on her sore feet. The dining hall was very large but practically bare of any kind of décor. The only thing in the room was the massive dining table that was currently occupied by only one diner. At the far end at the head of the table sat Jareth, looking a bit annoyed already as he waited, leaning back in his chair, his fingers drumming over the table top.

The goblin hurried from the room and she tried to push back the dread that rose in her chest at the realization of once more being left alone with Jareth. She wished she could have taken a seat at the opposite side of the table from him, but there were only two unoccupied chairs and both were placed on either side of the table right next to Jareth.

"Good of you to join me," Jareth drawled.

She wasn't late, was she? Sarah kept her mouth shut for once as she made her way up the side of the table to take a seat. She paused in her steps when Jareth rose from his seat and came around to meet her just in front of the chair she had planned to sit in. Sarah braced herself for just about anything he planned to throw at her- possibly literally- and made her way up to him, stopping just out of reach.

The look in Jareth's eyes held her in place more than any command could have as he easily closed the gap between them with two strides of his long legs. Sarah was surprised when he did no more than grasp her hand and raised it up to brush her knuckles against his lips, his intense stare still locked on her as his lips touched her skin. She repressed any reaction to it her body tried to make, and there was quite a bit to repress. She refused to give him the satisfaction.

Jareth allowed her hand to drop with a small smirk. "Just so you know for next time, it is customary for a female to curtsy when she is greeted in such a way."

Sarah said nothing in response because she knew nothing good would come of it and she was too hungry to argue with him. It's not like arguing ever got her anywhere, anyway. Jareth had already turned away from her and pulled out her seat. As much as she didn't trust Jareth to hold her chair, she still allowed him to do so without a word as she sat down in it. He slid it up easily behind her before retaking his own seat.

Sarah looked down at the empty table rather than him. She couldn't help but wonder where the food was.

Jareth saw her look of question and leaned back in his chair. "We're waiting for another yet, he'll be back in a moment. How was your day?" His tone was casual.

Sarah almost wanted to laugh at his demeanor. He always did that, act like they were some sort of actual couple or something when in reality he was a kidnapper that had ruined her life. He was also a man that acted cruelly towards her every time she refused to play along. "Fine," she muttered, unable to say much else to him. It had only been one of the most boring days of her life. "Who are we waiting on?"

Jareth chuckled lightly. "You really must be hungry. I asked Mavid to fetch Little Jareth so he may join us."

She couldn't help but frown in confusion at that. "Toby –I mean Little Jareth," she corrected herself at the dark look he gave her, "doesn't eat solid foods."

Jareth shrugged, "I am aware of that but he needs to start soon. He's already been nursed for too long and I have decided for the nurse to start him on solids next week sometime. I think it will be good for him to sit with us during meals for now on so he can learn by example. Children that young always learn best by watching others."

Karen had always put him down for naps or bed during their mealtimes, having fed him before. Sarah couldn't argue with Jareth's logic, really. It was about time for Toby to start on something other than milk and vitamins. Sarah didn't say anything but as she watched Jareth out of the corner of her eye. She hoped that eating was the only thing Toby learned from him by example. What if Jareth gave him the idea that it was alright to treat women the way he treated her?

She didn't even want to see Toby learning to walk from Jareth. He was crawling now and could stand on his own. He would walk any day now and she would just scream if he started strutting around the castle like Jareth did.

"You look troubled, Sarah," Jareth mentioned, taking in the look on her face. For once his concern seemed genuine "Is there anything I can do to ease you?"

There was no lewd sexuality in the question. Just cruel, confusing sincerity. It was unnerving. Such behavior didn't seem befitting of him. As long as he was asking, though, he could send her and Toby home and never ever interfere in their lives again. "No, nothing."

He looked like he was about to comment further but just then the doors opened and the male that he always seemed to have around came into the room, Toby sitting on his hip with a half bottle of milk clutched in his hands. A big grin split across his face when his eyes landed on Sarah and she felt like her heart would burst for a second as she fought to stay sitting in her seat rather than rush over to him. She'd heard Jareth speak the male's name earlier but couldn't remember it now.

"Sa-Sa!" Toby exclaimed since he couldn't yet pronounce Sarah or sister and Sa-Sa seemed to cover both when spoken out loud.

Sarah could feel Jareth watching her with a strange but decidedly non-hostile look. She ignored him completely and smiled back at Toby. The male came up the other side of the table and Sarah watched in silence as Toby was handed to Jareth before the male took his seat across from her. Now Toby was close enough that she could have reached out and touched him. The fact that Jareth was the one holding him stayed her hand. He settled Toby down on his lap and Toby conceded happily enough. He twisted around in his spot to look up at Jareth with his bottle in his mouth and earned a warm chuckle from Jareth. "Does that taste good?"

Toby brought the bottle down and laughed too like he understood before twisting back around to face the table and continue with his drink.

Sarah jumped when the dining room doors snapped open and in came a very short man with wild black hair and dark skin wearing an apron and pushing a cart loaded down with trays of silver. Sarah had seen him momentarily in the kitchens during her tour with Jareth. He was a brownie. She couldn't remember if he was the cook or the cook's assistant, but either way, it didn't really matter. He pulled the tray up on her side, placing Jareth's trays in front of him first, then moving around to Sarah's left side to do the same, then around the table to the other male before taking his empty cart and leaving.

Jareth reached out and muttered "salad" before uncovering his tray, after which the other male reached out and did the same. The lids were set aside and the only thing on the trays were plates of salads, some cups on the side of different dressings, and croutons. Jareth held Toby on his lap with one arm and used his other to pick up his salad fork. He glanced over at Sarah. "If you don't want salad just say 'soup' before you uncover your tray."

"What if I don't want either?" she asked, being intentionally difficult.

Jareth shrugged her off. "Then you may wait for next course."

Sarah let out a sigh and reached out to her tray. "Soup," she said, unsure how that was supposed to work but not feeling like questioning magic now.

She lifted the lid and low and behold there was soup. It looked like vegetable barley. Sarah looked down at her many spoons and picked one up at random, figuring it would work as well as the others. She didn't miss it when Jareth and the other male exchanged looks but said nothing. She let her spoon sit in her soup and reached out instead to her wine glass, drinking in the sweet taste of it. If they were going to keep doing that every time she did something improper it was going to be a long meal.

They went about their meal and when they were done with their first course they all placed the lids back on their trays, Sarah following their lead. When they removed them again the main course was sitting there in the place of first. Sarah's mouth watered instantly at the sight of the roasted lamb, baked potato, green beans, and coleslaw.

She looked over and noticed that Toby was starting to fidget and fuss in Jareth's lap, no doubt bored by having to sit there and watch. Jareth handled him gently enough, making sure he didn't squirm right out of his hold. His patience seemed endless. Sarah found herself reaching out before she could even think of what she was doing. "May I hold him now?" she asked.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the male lift his head and watch the scene with interest like he was unsure what would happen. Jareth seemed a little surprised that she had offered. He nodded his head though and hesitantly passed Toby off to her. "Very well, but be careful," he warned her like he thought she might actually drop him or something.

Sarah placed Toby down in her lap facing the table like Jareth had, hugging him against her and reveling in his familiarity. He smelled, felt, and looked just as he always had. Toby let his bottle drop and she was able to catch it, setting it on the table before it could drop to the floor. Toby watched the two males with big eyes as they started in on their food. Sarah laughed out loud when he reached out to her plate and seized her coleslaw in his hand, wanting to duplicate what he saw already. Sarah grasped his hand before he could bring it back to his mouth and gently removed the coleslaw from it, using her napkin to wipe the rest off as he started to squirm again.

X

Jareth watched Sarah intently out of the corner of his eye as she held his son, who was watching him eat with fascinated eyes. When the boy reached out and grabbed from Sarah's plate he had just about dropped his glass of wine at the sound of Sarah's laughter. He had never heard her laugh like that, not once. He thought it sounded beautiful, absolutely wonderful and wished she would do it again. He stared at her blatantly now, watching as she cleaned the food from his son's fist. A sweet smile was ever present on her lips as she held him close to her.

Jareth almost laughed at himself, turning back to his meal. He was feeling jealous of his own son. What he wouldn't pay to have her look at him with half so much love and adornment. He had definitely chosen correctly for his son's new mother.

She looked up and caught him staring at her and her smile immediately vanished, hitting him like a smack in the face. Why did she have to do that? He cast her a frown to match her own before turning back to his plate.

"I almost forgot to tell you," Mavid spoke up, breaking the spell of silence that had hung over them all.

Jareth looked up, only half interested in what the male had to say, he was still brooding over Sarah.

"I've arranged for accommodations in the East wing for your guests to stay in when they arrive, which should be sometime tonight."

Sarah looked up with a frown. "Guests?"

Jareth turned back to her. "Your serving ladies. My cousins Clora and Ishapell will be staying here to help you learn what you will need to learn. As well as keep you out of trouble," he tacked on just to jab back at her for upsetting him earlier.

She looked like she was about to make a face at him but caught herself. Fear of torture suited her well enough, he decided. She muttered something under her breath that sounded like a curse but Jareth didn't quite catch it. "What was that?"

She looked up at him with an amazingly fake smile. Her voice was sickly sweet when she answered. "I just asked what's for desert."

Mavid didn't even so much as look up from the piece of lamb he was cutting into. "She said she hasn't done anything wrong."

Sarah's eyes widened and her mouth dropped a little. Clearly, she hadn't expected him to have heard her either and certainly hadn't expected him to tell on her if he had. Jareth let out a sigh and reached for his wine glass again. Why did she have to be so damn difficult towards him?

Sarah looked down at the table rather than Jareth, her hand playing with Toby's hair absentmindedly. She knew she'd been caught lying.

Jareth wasn't in the mood for this. He would address it later perhaps, but not in the middle of supper and certainly not in front of his son. He set his empty glass back down on the table and it instantly refilled itself. "The East wing should be sufficient enough for them," he sighed, going back to his conversation with Mavid.

X

Sarah hardly picked at her food for the rest of the meal, passing up dessert when it turned out to be a peach cobbler. She wasn't about to eat that. Jareth had watched her with knowing amusement when she had pushed her tray away from her. While the two had continued to eat she focused instead on Toby, who had finished the contents of his bottle. She leaned him forward on her knee and patted his back till he could manage a burp or two.

Jareth brought a napkin to his lips after he had finished his cobbler, still watching her as she bounced Toby on her knee. He was always watching her it seemed. "If you wish to you may take Little Jareth back to his room and play with him for a bit."

Sarah couldn't help but smile at that. Placing a kiss against the back of Toby's head before getting up from her seat. She hesitated for a moment when Jareth and the other male both stood up with her, but then realized they were just being polite and she turned away from them as they returned to their seats, happy to finally be away from them.

Sarah found her way back to the hall of the mirror painting and carried Toby into the nursery that had been set up for him. She about jumped out of her skin when she walked in to find Tallia already in there, sitting in the rocking chair and flipping through a book. As soon as Tallia looked up and saw Sarah she rose to her feet and bowed her, low and formal. She was so quick about it that Sarah almost wasn't sure but she could have sworn…

"Tallia, are you alright?"

The female didn't look up at her. "I'm fine, Miss. Can I help you?"

"Tallia, would you please look at me?" Sarah asked, finding her own voice was starting to shake slightly.

Slowly, almost painfully so, Tallia raised her head up and Sarah could see it clearly now. Her heart dropped into her stomach as she took in the red scar that ran up the side of Tallia's face. "Tallia, may I ask how you got that mark?"

The female closed her eyes and her head slowly dipped back down. A strange noise escaped her lips and that was all it took before she was outright sobbing, her hands flying up to cover her face. Sarah quickly set Toby down on the floor next to his toy box and rushed over to the taller female, wrapping her arms tightly around her in comfort as well as to help her as she sank to the ground from the force of her tears. She wasn't stupid. She could put two and two together to figure out that somehow Jareth must have found out that Tallia had hit Sarah with the door the other morning. Sarah could only hold the weeping female and try to comfort her. It hadn't seemed like a bad scar, but Tallia was certainly taking it hard. "I didn't tell him, Tallia, I swear I didn't," Sarah told her, stroking the female's wheat colored hair.

It was a while before Tallia could speak through her sobs. "I know that, M-Miss," she gasped out, bringing her skirt up to wipe at her wet face. "I told him what I had done."

"And then that bastard did this to you?!" Sarah hissed out, wishing Jareth were right here so she could smack the shit out of him. "Didn't you tell him it was an accident?"

Tallia simply shook her head. "Yes, but it makes no difference, your highness. Truly, I am lucky to still have my life, but…"

The female broke into more sobs and Sarah held her tighter. She glanced over to check on Toby quick, seeing he had found a stuffed Pegasus doll and was chewing on one of the wings.

"I'm so ugly now!" Tallia exclaimed, her efforts to sob her eyes out redoubling.

Sarah felt taken aback by that. "What?" she asked, complete disbelief in her voice. "Tallia, the scar isn't that bad, hardly noticeable, really."

Tallia just shook her head, still refusing to look at her. "You don't understand. The fae _hate_ imperfections. With this scar, I might as well be deformed!"

Sarah could hardly wrap her mind around that. Were they really all so shallow? If she got a scar no bigger than Tallia's would Jareth consider her ugly? As much as she hated to admit it that thought scared her. Unsure of how she could possibly get Tallia to see it differently, Sarah could only sit there and hold the female as she continued to sob.

"Thank you, your highness," Tallia sobbed out at long last, just starting to get a grip on herself, "You are very kind."

 _Hardly_ , Sarah thought to herself, feeling guilty about what had been done to the innocent female. This place just made her feel sicker every day. She would feel ashamed if this was her kingdom.

Both of the females jumped when the locks on the nursery door clicked open and the male from supper earlier entered. Tallia shrunk back from Sarah's hold, moving back further from the door and the male without once looking him in the face. Sarah couldn't believe how ashamed she was of such a little scar and her heart ached for the woman.

The male with dark hair and deep blue eyes that always seemed so focused on anything he looked at observed the room, taking in Toby sitting by himself only a couple feet away with more toys he had managed to pull out of his toy bin and then falling on Sarah and the nurse. Sarah had no idea what he was thinking- unlike Jareth whenever he looked at her- and felt a chill sweep over her arms. After a long pause, he bowed down to Sarah. "His majesty has asked that I inform you that your serving ladies have both arrived, and he asks that I escort you to meet them before they retire to their rooms for the night."

Sarah frowned at that. She hadn't really gotten to spend any time with Toby and she had no desire whatsoever to meet any family of Jareth's. They were sure to be just as terrible as he was. "I'd rather not," Sarah said honestly, remaining in her spot on the floor.

The male straightened up with a sigh. "I am merely doing as I was told, my queen. If you keep me from carrying out my orders I will be punished, though." He reached his hand out for her to take, "If you please?"

Damn it, she didn't want to be the cause of anyone else getting in trouble. What if the same thing was done to this guy as was done to Tallia just because she didn't go with him? She wouldn't put it past Jareth. With a sigh she got up and placed her hand in his, not seeing his smirk as she turned back to Tallia. "You will take care of Toby?"

Tallia looked over at the baby and back at Sarah before nodding her head briskly, "Of course, my lady."

Sarah was thankful that despite what Jareth had done to her, Tallia seemed to bear no ill will what so ever towards his son.

X

Sarah followed the male through the halls. "Where are we going?" she asked.

He stayed right next to her, matching his pace to hers so that he didn't overtake her but could still show her the way. "To the throne room, my queen. Jareth is there greeting our guests."

"You don't need to keep calling me your queen. You call Jareth by his name, you can do the same for me. My name is Sarah," she said, tired of all the formalities.

The male looked over at her and offered her a small smile. "Very well, Sarah. My name is Mavid, but you may call me by whatever name you wish."

Mavid, right that was what Jareth had called him. It was strange, but although he was naturally very handsome, something about his smile took away from his good looks just slightly. It was rare, but some people just looked better when they frowned or made no expression at all. Mavid had one of those faces.

 _Stop it_ , Sarah scolded herself. _Remember this is the guy that ratted you out at supper_.

She turned back to the male. "Mavid, what is your relationship with Jareth? Are you like his secretary?"

Mavid laughed at that, his laugh sharp and short. "I suppose somewhat yes. I like to think of it more as his assistant though. I tend to help him and do anything he requires of me. He's also my oldest friend, of course."

Oh, so this guy was close to Jareth. Sarah looked back down at the floor as they walked, figuring that meant she needed to watch what she said in front of him, too, then. For all she knew, he was Jareth's eyes and ears. She couldn't hold back her question though, one she desperately wanted to ask. "Were you around when Jareth was married to my stepmother?"

Mavid regarded her out of the corner of his eye and she wondered for a moment if he was even going to answer her. "Yes, I was, Sarah. I was also present during his first marriage."

She looked up at that in confusion. "First marriage? You mean Karen wasn't his first wife?"

Mavid shook his head, "No, but she was his second. You are his third."

Sarah let out a snort at that. "Lucky me," she muttered bitterly, her head still spinning from the knowledge she had just gained.

They rounded the corner and stopped in front of the doors to the throne room. Mavid stepped forward then to open them up for Sarah. She steeled her back and fought the urge to run right back down the hall the way she had come.

As the doors opened she could see Jareth was sitting on his throne, speaking softly with two females who stood before him. As soon as the doors opened, their talking hushed and all eyes turned to her, making her hesitate to enter the room.

The two females were both beautiful, and both were of the fae. She would have expected no less. They both studied her with critical eyes as Jareth spoke up, still relaxing in his spot on the throne. "Sarah, these are my cousins and your new ladies, Ishapell and Clora."

The taller one, Ishapell, was thin as a board and looked just as stiff, with her pointed face reminding Sarah of an afghan wolfhound and her blond hair situated in a bun at the top of her head save for a few strands she allowed to hang down around her ears. Sarah noticed that she had the same sharp cheekbones that Jareth possessed. Her eyes were minty green in color and raked over Sarah like she was considering purchasing her dress. It might have been a good idea since her own gown was dusty pink in color and covered her entire body from neck to wrists to floor. It made her look even more uptight. The other one, Clora was a bit more pleasant looking with her orange hair gathered up into a curly updo atop her heart-shaped face. Her eyes were a golden brown and her dress was an off the shoulder cut with skirts that clung to her body rather than fanned out and it was dyed a soft purple color. She smiled and her eyes lit up when she saw Sarah like she had just gotten a new toy at Christmas.

They both curtseyed to her when they were done taking her in. "You majesty," they said as one.

Mavid just barely brushed the back of her arm with his fingertips, but it was enough to signal her to move into the room. Her legs worked despite herself but she still stopped several steps away from them all. "Hello," she said weakly, unsure what the hell she was supposed to do.

Jareth swung his legs onto the floor and stood up. "That will be fine for tonight, ladies," he sighed, waving off his cousins like he was bored of them. "Mavid will show you to your rooms. Sarah will not require your assistance till tomorrow morning."

Well, so much for meeting them.

Sarah didn't complain any more than the other females did as they walked past her to meet Mavid at the door, both casting final sidelong glances at her before departing. Once they were out of sight down the hall Sarah turned back to Jareth, who was once again leering at her with intense eyes. "Did you enjoy your time with my son?"

Sarah scowled at him then. "Tallia was there, I saw her face," she snapped at him accusingly.

Jareth actually had the audacity to laugh at that. "A very light sentence for what she did, I assure you."

Sarah hadn't wanted to fight him anymore, but her outrage at the injustice of the innocent girl bit back the fears she had of punishment. "It had been an accident and she was sorry about it!"

"Which is why she received such a light punishment," Jareth shrugged. "Law still dictated that I take her life for causing harm to the queen."

"You cause harm to me," she hissed at him, her hands clenching into fists at her sides.

Jareth's smirk vanished and he made his way over to her, stopping to stand just in front of her. "That is entirely different."

"Yeah, it is," Sarah agreed bitterly, "Because you actually mean to cause me harm and go unpunished for it!"

Jareth glared down at her. "I am your king," he said, like that justified everything.

"You're horrible!" Sarah spat out before she could stop herself.

X

Jareth struck before she could even see his hand move, hitting her fast and smooth in the mouth. It forced her head to the side but she stayed standing as she stumbled back from him in order to get out of reach, her hand covered her mouth and her eyes were full of pain as she stared hard at the floor. "I remember having a conversation with you just this morning about how much I don't care for insults. I hope you will do better to curb your tone."

"Why do you always have to be so horrible to me?" Sarah asked, her voice barely audible she was so quiet. The hurt he could hear in her voice almost made him want to apologize and take her into his arms, but then she wouldn't get the point. Besides, what the rotten child deserved was a stern lashing, not comfort. Jareth offered her none of either as he backed off from her.

He was no worse to her than she was to him. Why did she insist on picking fights with him when she knew what the outcome would be; what it would _always_ be?

"It's getting late, Sarah," he sighed, beyond tired from the day. "Let's go back to our chambers."

Sarah didn't fight him anymore, keeping her mouth shut and her eyes down as he escorted her back to their rooms. Pain and fear could always remind a person of their place, but he still felt sorry he was forced to take that route with his own wife.

As soon as they got back to their room Sarah slipped through her door, obviously intent on not having to spend any more time with him. He rolled his eyes at her behavior. She would never get undressed without his help. Jareth considered locking her door and leaving her in her clothes for the night, let her try to sleep with a corset on. He had been with enough women to know such a feat was impossible. Instead, he left her door alone and went over to his bed, sitting down on the edge so he could remove his shirt and boots. He had just stood back up to undo his trousers when the door between their rooms cracked open and Sarah slowly came into the room, pausing in her step when she first saw him. Her hair was down and he noticed that some of the buttons in the back of the dress were undone- more than he would have thought she could get- but she was far from freeing herself from it. Her shoes and jewelry were also already removed from her.

He made no move towards her, allowing her to come to him for once as she sheepishly approached. Her voice was quiet when she first spoke and although he heard her the first time, he asked her to speak up so he could hear it again.

Sarah's cheeks flushed and a glint of anger entered her eyes as she looked up at him. "I said can you please help me undress."

Jareth nodded his head and held back his smirk till she had turned around, presenting him with her back like he had wanted her to do earlier. He reached out and quickly undid the buttons like he had been doing that all his life. He helped Sarah out of her gown, tossing it aside onto the floor. She continued to face away from him as he reached for the strings of the corset that hung down, allowing his fingers to graze her backside as he gripped the strings, earning a very small gasp from her that caused his grin to widen as he began to stiffen inside the already unfastened trousers he wore. If she were facing him she would have been able to notice it immediately. He loved the little noises and reactions she would make sometimes. They taunted him so.

He undid the corset and the second he was able to peel it from her skin Sarah let out a loud sigh and relaxed considerably, lines from the harsh corset decorating her skin like some sort of unusual tattoo. Jareth reached out instinctively, wrapping his arms around her and pulling him back against his chest as his hands cupped her breasts. Sarah tensed in his arms again, but not nearly as much as she usually did when he touched her. She was dressed in nothing but her white panties and hose and Jareth couldn't help but appreciate the visual he was rewarded with as he trailed his lips along the back of her exposed neck. She shivered against him and moved like she intended to leave his hold. He wouldn't allow it.

"Don't defy me, Sarah," he spoke, nipping at the skin of her neck and being rewarded with another gasp. "You've done so enough for one day."

Sarah said nothing as his hand slid down the skin of her stomach and her waist, his fingers dipping just under the line of her underwear. It wasn't until he found his way to stroke between her lips that she really tensed up again, her thighs squeezing around his insistent hand. Jareth could feel her wetness and ran one finger up her center, causing her to tremble in pleasure against him despite her efforts to resist. She would save herself and him a lot of grief if she would just admit that she did, in fact, want him. He knew that her body was welcoming enough, but she refused to let it be so. It was enough to drive him mad with anger and lust at the same time.

X

Sarah wasn't sure what to do; she wanted to fight him off but knew if she did he would just slap her around more before explaining that this was his marital right or some bull shit before taking her anyway. It wasn't like he hadn't done this before or anything. They'd had sex already twice, three times if you counted what he had done to her last night in her room. Would it really do any good to fight him this time? He would just do it again and again anyway. Besides, it did kind of feel good what he did to her. He was obviously skilled at this sort of thing.

Sarah yelped when she was pulled from her thoughts when he turned her around to face him and pushed her back onto the bed, looking down at her with an intensity that left her feeling like prey. Sarah simply watched with wide eyes as he reached down and ran his fingertips over the fine hairs that disappeared beneath his waistline before he shoved his pants down his legs, revealing himself to her so she could see how swollen and ready he was. She moved up the bed, out of habit but also because she didn't want to be on the edge of the bed. Jareth reached out and grabbed her ankle before she could get too far out of his reach, pulling her right back down to the very edge of the bed. His free hand grabbed her other ankle and he used them to position her legs together straight up in the air, reaching back down to her hips to unclip her garter strings from her hose and slipped her panties up her legs. He tossed them aside, never once looking away from her as he took hold of her ankles once more and spread her legs wide, almost to the point of pain so she was completely exposed to him. Sarah felt like she was in a fog, her thoughts slowed as she watched him do so. It wasn't until he positioned himself right at her entrance that she made her first protest, reaching down like she intended to block him but she was too late and he shoved himself deep inside of her, reaching the back of her in a thrust that sent an odd feeling of pleasure that mixed with the feeling of discomfort of having him filling her so till that too seemed to take on its own good sensation. Sarah moaned before she could stop herself and her hand flew to her mouth, embarrassed by the throaty and erotic noise she had made. Jareth released her ankles and pulled her hand away from her mouth as he continued to pump into her.

It felt so different from the previous times, a hot pressure building up in her as he kept up the swing of his hips. Jareth didn't break stride as he grabbed her ankles again and brought her legs together before turning them so her hips were on their side against the mattress while her upper body continued to face straight up. It made it tighter and she could feel him moving over the inside of her walls in a way that sent thrilling rushes through her. Sarah looked up and saw herself in the mirror above, moving from Jareth's thrusts, only his hips and arms in view as he bucked into her while his arms held her in place by her thighs and her hip so she wouldn't move away from him. Another pang of pleasure rocked through her hard enough to cause her vision to blur for a second and she couldn't suppress her moans any longer. Jareth bent down over her, his lips finding hers as his hips slowed their pace enough so she could feel the sliding sensations of him thrusting in and out of her even more clearly and she moaned into his mouth like he was determined to drink the noises down.

He broke off from the kiss suddenly with a groan that sounded very deep and primal to Sarah's ears and another wave swept over her, then another and another that only caused the building heat to span through her till it felt like she would explode. Jareth sped up in his movements and Sarah's hands flew out to grip the sheets and she looked up at herself in the mirror as she tensed up all over for a split second before a noise unlike any that had proceeded it before escaped her and she orgasmed for the first time from sex, a deep throbbing feeling sending pleasure more intense than before throughout her.

Jareth's eyes were closed tight and his body was tightly strained as he continued to thrust, his hips swinging wildly as he continued to groan. Then his body froze up just like Sarah's had and he collapsed on top of her, tremors racing through his body.

Sarah moved as fast as she could with strength she didn't know she had to pull herself out from underneath him just enough that he fell out of her a fraction of a second before he came, soaking the bed instead of coming inside her again.

Jareth didn't move for a couple seconds at all. He cupped himself in his hand as he rose to his knees, pegging Sarah with a look of confusion and anger as he continued to pant like he had just run for miles. Sarah looked up at him with wide eyes. "I didn't want you to finish inside of me," she defended, moving further up the bed so she could safely sit outside of the mess.

Jareth looked down in disgust. "Damn it, how am I supposed to sleep here now?" he demanded like she would know the answer.

He didn't have to be so dramatic; it wasn't like his bed wasn't big enough for five people to sleep comfortably in. The mess wasn't that bad. "You should have used protection," Sarah sniffed indignantly.

Jareth pegged her with another look of confusion.

"You don't have any forms of protection in the Underground?" she asked, shock in her voice.

This time it was Jareth that got indignant. "Of course we do, but what does that matter?"

"Don't you know where babies come from?!" Sarah practically wailed, "That way I don't end up pregnant!"

Jareth regarded her very calmly. "Why wouldn't we want that?"

X


	8. Chapter 8

[Beta for this chapter is of course also the lovely The Art Of Suicide]

 _X_

" _You should have used protection," Sarah sniffed indignantly._

 _Jareth pegged her with another look of confusion._

" _You don't have any forms of protection in the Underground?" she asked, shock in her voice._

 _This time it was Jareth that got indignant. "Of course, we do, but what does that matter?"_

" _Don't you know where babies come from?!" Sarah practically wailed, "That way I don't end up pregnant!"_

 _Jareth regarded her very calmly. "Why wouldn't we want that?"_

…

Her breath caught in her throat at that.

Jareth's eyes were deadly serious as he continued, "I would like it very much if you did get pregnant, Sarah," he admitted, "I enjoy being a father, I would love to have more children." His smile was pleasant as he reached out to touch her knee, causing her to tense all over as her eyes got wide as saucers and her thoughts all slowed to a stop in her shock. "And I would kill to have your children. I can already imagine what strong little rulers you and I would make."

Sarah could only continue to stare at him in her shock. That was the absolute last thing in the world she wanted. She wouldn't give him children if it would stop the world from falling down!

She kept that tidbit to herself for fear of what he would say or do, but she wasn't going to just sit back and say nothing about this. She couldn't. Sarah dug down deep inside to find her voice. "But… what if I don't want to get pregnant?" she asked, afraid of what his response would be.

Jareth's reaction caught her off guard. She expected him to be angry with her, or to tell her that what she wanted didn't matter. But for a brief instant, she could have sworn that he looked… hurt.

The pain on his face and in his eyes vanished so quickly that Sarah doubted if she had ever even seen it. His expression was one of thoughtfulness and understanding as he moved around the spot on the bed to sit next to her, scooping her up into his arms. Sarah didn't struggle this time as he pulled her into his lap, simply allowing him to hold her and stroke her hair. She was going to pick her battles and in the middle of baby talk a little unwanted touching after sex was not the battle to focus on.

His voice was caring and gentle when he spoke. "Sarah, having a child is the greatest joy in the world. There is nothing more precious. Why wouldn't you want to become pregnant?"

 _Because you're insane! I hate being here and I hate you! I wouldn't give you a hug by choice, much less a baby!_ She just stared up at him for a long couple of seconds, trying to think of something she could tell him out loud without him beating the life out of her for it. "I'm not ready to have any children of my own, and you already have T- your son already," she said, her voice pleading with him to listen to her.

His face remained considerate as he placed a kiss on her forehead. "I know it can be scary to think about at first. After all, we are talking about bringing a life into existence. It's nothing to take lightly. But women younger and far more delicate than you have been doing so for eons. It's a natural part of life and at least you have the benefit of being married to a man with power and wealth whom will be there for you and support you and any children we have. We're as ready now as we'll ever be."

She wasn't contending whether or not he was a devoted father; she knew he was. She hadn't really meant ready in the literal sense. "Jareth, I don't want to get pregnant," she insisted.

"You are too young to know what you really want," he rebutted. "Sarah I'm not saying you will have a child tomorrow. There is plenty of time," he assured her, stroking her cheek with the back of his hand.

Sarah pulled away from him, at which he frowned and held onto her tighter, his fingers pinching her chin so she would have to look at him. "Sarah stop that. I don't like it when you act this way to me," he warned her. His face softened again and he released her chin to stroke her hair once more. It really was like a switch had been flipped or something. "You were being so good to me, too. Even you enjoyed the sex just now," he smirked knowingly, earning him another scowl, "Wasn't that pleasure you felt so much better than fighting me?"

He so wasn't getting this. She would fight him every night tooth and nail if it kept him from coming inside of her again. She couldn't get pregnant, it would make escaping that much more impossible.

She knew she wouldn't be able to make him listen to her anymore tonight. She wanted to be as far away from him as she could get if his mind was on babies. She looked down into her lap and tried to keep her voice humble as she spoke. "Can I go to my room now?"

"For what?"

"I'm tired," she huffed, her temper starting to flare just the slightest bit.

"I want you to stay with me tonight actually. The nights are starting to chill in the Labyrinth," he shrugged, moving over on the bed with her still in his arms, turning to lay her out next to him. Obviously, he didn't find the matter to be up for debate, but she didn't want to sleep with him overnight. She wanted to go back to her room and be alone. "Then get another blanket!"

Jareth reached out and grasped her jaw in his hand, squeezing down enough to make her wince. She hated that he always did that. "I don't care for your tone," he warned her, his tone cold and firm. "I said I wish for you to stay with me tonight and so you will. I want to have you close by tonight should the mood strike me again."

She had to really bite down on her tongue to not say anything stupid that would result in certain punishment. Even with the threat of punishment, it was still hard to do. Jareth scooted in next to her on the bed and brought the blankets up, tucking them both in. Sarah turned on her side so that she at least wouldn't have to face him and he moved in close behind her, the line of his body pressed up against the back of hers, his arms wrapping around her and keeping her from moving away from him.

She couldn't remember the last time she had felt so uncomfortable. How was she supposed to fall asleep like this? She was used to sleeping by herself in her own bed, so it was strange enough to be sleeping with a man, but then to add on that the man was Jareth…

Sarah tensed all over from toes to fingertips when Jareth's hand started to stroke along her side again, gradually moving forward till he could stroke over her breast in the same languid motion. It was obvious where he was already headed again and Sarah fought back her cry of outrage at the unfairness of it all.

X

Karen pulled into the deserted parking lot of the McDonalds. It was still open, but this late at night customers were few and far in between. She would have liked to do this at home but couldn't chance Roger catching wise to anything that was actually going on. Karen went around the drive-through and ordered some coffee, feeling like she could really use it and that the employees might not bother with her at all as she sat in her car in their parking lot if she bought something. She paid quickly and pulled into one of the parking spots further away from the entrances and windows of the building, locking her doors and killing the engine. She was already a tad late for her "meeting". She hoped that her old friend didn't mind the poor conditions, but she had very little choice.

Karen looked around her at the deserted parking lot. There was only her.

She turned back to her rear-view mirror and adjusted it so it faced her. She licked her lips and called on her old savior. "Madunet. Madunet. Madunet," she said three times very clearly. The best way to summon someone by mirror in the underground was to say their name three times, although there was a bit more to it than that. It was a good thing for a lot of children that there really was no "Bloody Mary", but she knew beings existed in the underground that would do worse to those who summoned them just for the fun of it.

Slowly, the image of her own eyes looking back at her in the mirror shifted and hazed over. The eyes that looked back at her were bright yellow in color and surrounded by old and withered skin. Crow's feet and liver spots left no question that the female looking back at her was very aged. The voice that filtered through to Karen's ears when the female spoke was soft and beautiful, like listening to an angel speak. "You are late," the voice informed her, just the slightest hints of annoyance in her tone, "What kept you?"

Karen leaned forward in her seat, "I'm sorry but I had to get out of the house and got caught up on Roger."

"Why can I only see your eyes? Where are you?"

"I'm sorry I had to use the mirror in my car."

"Your what? Oh, never mind, but you'll have to provide something larger if we are to return your children to you."

Karen nodded her head in urgent understanding. "I know and I will, but right now this will have to do I'm afraid."

The odd yellow eyes narrowed slightly. "We saved you from your misery at the hands of the Goblin King in the past and suffered heavily for it, as you were told of."

Karen dipped her head down in shame and gratefulness. "I know and am forever in your debt, and that is why I am agreeing to uphold my end of our arrangement to allow you to send over two of your changeling babes with my children."

Changelings were nasty and vicious beasts that could appear completely human but would cause misery and pain to all those who stay around them for very long. The "Underground Women" who cared for the changelings had a hard time getting them into the Aboveground though and Karen would be able to allow safe and easy passage since she was already in the Aboveground. After she had Sarah and Toby back it would be her job to take the changelings and leave them somewhere for the public to find. That was the deal.

It hadn't been too long ago that the Underground Women had made possible her own escape from Jareth and she had never looked back till now.

When she had first contacted the Underground Women in hopes that they may also help her with her children's escapes they had been furious with her, screeching at her about how Jareth had been sure that it was them who had helped her and that he had asked the council's permission to seek retribution. He was denied, of course, as they were also the caretakers of the human children that are taken away to the underground and considered invaluable. Weeks later, however, the Underground Women- as they were called- had awakened to find their beloved changelings had all been murdered in their sleep and the cribs that carried them smashed to bits. They were sure that Jareth was behind it somehow. They were still recovering from the loss.

It had taken Karen almost three hours the other night to beg and bargain the Underground Women into agreeing to help her. Since the slaughter, they only had the two changelings in their current possession and wanted to make sure that nothing could happen to them if Jareth sought revenge a second time. Karen hadn't wanted to, but in the end, she had no choice but to agree to be the one to call the changelings into the Aboveground. Changelings were, after all, responsible for nearly all of the greatest wars and tragedies of all time in the aboveground. The last changeling that had gained such power had started his own religion and killed all the members with cyanide and Kool-Aid.

"I thank you from the bottom of my soul for agreeing to help me with this," She added, not wanting them to think for one second that she wasn't grateful and then back out of the deal.

The Underground Woman's eyes narrowed again. "We do this not for you, but for the children and for our own offspring, do not mistake our motifs."

As haggard and spiteful as the women were against all living beings, they had unnaturally soft spots for children and their changelings. It was really because Toby was still a babe that they had even agreed to hear her out at all.

"As we speak, the Goblin King is having the garden walls rebuilt and secured for the keeping of your young ones. He thinks he will keep her from finding a way out from there like you did, but the Path Master is already there and watching its construction closely. They are set to be done in the next day or so. The Path Master will contact the girl at the first opportunity."

Karen just hoped and prayed that he did let Sarah out into the garden. She had no idea what was going on in that castle with her children and it was driving her nuts. Scratch that –she could make some guesses as to what was happening and that drove her even further insane. Sarah was far more stubborn than she had been at that age. That would cause her nothing but misery around Jareth.

"Just a few more days, Sarah. Please hang in there and don't do anything stupid," Karen prayed under her breath as the image in the mirror faded away.

X

"Wake up, Darling. Wake up," a soft voice coaxed gently.

Sarah was slowly dragged from her sleep between the light voice and the soft kisses that grazed her cheeks. She opened her eyes and looked up to see Jareth leaning over her from where he sat next to her on the bed. She tried not to glare at him in her moodiness. She had hardly gotten any sleep last night because of his damn libido. He had gone after her an additional two times during the night, once at four in the morning! The first time she had managed to pull away from him again before he could finish inside her and after he had finished, grumbling petulantly, he had pulled the sullied sheet from the bed so that they were forced to sleep on the mattress itself. At four in the morning though she had been sluggish and he had been wise to her game. She had failed to stop him that time. Afterward, she'd had to go into the bathroom to clean up but it had taken forever for her to get back to sleep. She had hardly gotten any sleep at all and here he was waking her up at –she looked at the little clock that was kept on the side stand –seven am!

Sarah rolled over onto her side facing away from him, intending to try to ignore him and go back to sleep. He simply gripped her shoulder and rolled her back over to face him patiently. "Come on now, Darling. It's time to get up."

"I'm tired!" she snapped, "It's not like I was allowed to sleep much last night."

Jareth simply smirked at that. He pulled the covers from her and she squirmed uncomfortably as the chill of the air assaulted her exposed flesh. Jareth's eyes raked over her body appreciatively before he reached out and gathered her into his arms, pulling her over onto his lap. She noticed then that he was already dressed for the day in a soft cream-colored shirt that was buttoned halfway up his chest so that his pendant was still visible around his neck, a dark brown and elegantly abstract jacket of soft material that felt cool against her skin, matching gloves, and leggings that left little to the imagination before dipping down into his boots that came up to just over the knee. "Come now, Sarah, you don't want to make your serving ladies wait forever, now do you?"

She frowned up at him. "What?"

"They are waiting for you in your room to help you dress," he explained simply. "I will have to leave you with them for the better part of the day since I have a lot of work to get caught up on, but they will be there to help you and keep you company." He moved her from his lap onto the bed beside him gently before she could say anything at all and stood up, smoothing out some ruffles in his shirt.

Sarah reached out and grabbed his wrist from her spot on the bed before he could turn to leave. He looked down at her hand on him apprehensively but she ignored it, keeping her grip on him since she knew it didn't hurt him at all. "Wait, you can't just go like that!"

His eyebrow lifted as if to question that.

"I can't go into my room if they're already there, they'll see me in the buff!" she whined.

Jareth smiled down at her with patience and gently removed her hand from his wrist, taking it instead in his hand as he turned back to her. "Sarah, they are females just like you, it's not going to matter. Besides, you can't very well get dressed on your own."

"But-"

"No buts, Sarah. Do as I say," he cut her off. He leaned down and placed a quick kiss on her cheek. "I will see you tonight at supper at the very latest." With that, he turned and left the room before she could press further.

Sarah looked over at the door between their joined rooms. She felt completely exposed and uncomfortable with the aspect of going into her room naked in front of two women she had never even said a word to. This was made no easier by the knowledge that they were cousins of Jareth.

What else could she do, though? She didn't want to spend the rest of the day sitting naked on his bed. Sarah pulled the thin sheet off the bed and wrapped it around herself. It dragged past her feet and she had to tuck the blanket under her arms and hold it up so she didn't trip as she very slowly made her way over to her door. She felt extremely nervous as her hand settled on the knob and took a deep breath before turning it open.

Just as Jareth said, the two females from last night were already there waiting for her. They both straightened up and then curtsied to her before the door could even open all the way. "Good morning, Miss," they both greeted her in unison.

She wanted to back out of the room and close the door behind her. The prospect of spending the entire day shut up in that room again gave her the backbone she needed to do a sort of bob back to them and step into her room. "Um, hi."

The two females exchanged looks before the shorter one started giggling and the tall blonde pursed her lips. The short redhead covered her mouth but continued to smile. "I'm sorry, your majesty, it's just that I don't think I have ever heard such a greeting before from someone of the nobles."

"What Clora means, your highness," Ishapell spoke up, shooting a look at the redhead, "Is that it would be more proper for a lady of your standing to give us a greeting more along the lines of 'good indeed' or a simple nod of the head would do. If you were to greet us as fellow nobles than you would perhaps either speak our names in acknowledgment or say, 'and a good morning to you as well'."

Sarah couldn't help but simply stare at the blonde. Ishapell blanched after a moment of silence like she was afraid she had just upset her and curtsied again, her head dipping down this time. "I apologize, Miss, for correcting you so, but his majesty has asked that we help to educate you on such matters."

Sarah wrapped the blanket a little tighter around her. "You can call me Sarah. And why do you call Jareth his majesty? He's your cousin, isn't he?"

"He's also a man and a king," Ishapell said like that explained it. After what she had seen and heard Sarah wouldn't have been at all surprised if that really was just supposed to explain it.

"Whatever," she sighed, turning to head into her closet so she could get dressed.

"Oh, Miss, his majesty has already laid out your garments for the day," Ishapell called after her.

Sarah turned around in surprise to see the female was absolutely right. Laid out on her bed were her under-things, jewelry, and a light blue colored dress. A pair of matching shoes sat beside the bed. Why had he done that?

Sarah came back into the room slowly in her confused suspicion. Clora hurried up to her. "Shall we help you dress, Sarah? That blanket isn't exactly fashionable," she joked with a smile.

"Um, yes, thank you," Sarah muttered, already knowing which of the two females she liked more.

Clora went over to the bed and gathered up the under-things in her arms.

"You needn't thank us, Miss," Ishapell said, her lips pursing again, "It is our duty while we are here to assist you."

"That's no reason not to say thank you," Sarah shrugged, slightly annoyed by the blonde's stick-up-the-ass behavior.

Clora came back over to Sarah and handed her underwear and a garter belt. "If you go ahead and put these on I can help you with the corset."

Sarah glared at the violet corset in the female's arms like it was insulting to her very eyes. "Must I wear the corset?"

"It would be most improper not to, Miss," Ishapell piped up.

Sarah sighed and slipped her underwear and garter belt on underneath the blanket, still feeling modest. When she was finished she then took the corset from Clora and placed it over her chest before letting the blanket slip out from underneath to the floor. If either female thought anything of it neither said a word. Sarah went over and gripped her bed post as Clora started to lace up the back of the torturous device that man declared 'corset'. She looked over at Ishapell. "I meant it when I said you may call me Sarah," she reminded the female, already tired of being called "Miss".

Ishapell's green eyes narrowed. "That would also be most improper, Miss."

Sarah gasped as Clora pulled tight and the corset enveloped her like a vise.

X

"He's so very cute, isn't he?" Clora squealed as they all watched Toby use Sarah's knees to help him balance as he pulled himself to a standing position. Sarah beamed down at Toby when he held his position for about a minute, grinning back up at her. All four females "awed" when he lost his strength and plopped back onto his rump. Sarah leaned forward and scooped him up into her lap so he could sit with them.

After they had gotten her dressed and informed her that she was indeed allowed to roam the castle again today Sarah had taken it upon herself to seek out Toby and Tallia, wanting to spend time with him. Tallia seemed reluctant at first to want to join them in the lounge, and Sarah had seen the looks both Clora and Ishapell had sneaked at the scar on the female's face, but in the end, she agreed and they had spent the better part of the day just talking with each other and playing with Toby. They had even all taken lunch in the lounge. Sarah noticed, just as much as Tallia did, that the two other females wouldn't look Tallia directly in the face at all, but they were pleasant to her so everyone ignored it. "He'll start to walk on his own any day now," Tallia smiled.

"Good, then he'll have no excuse not to come and visit his dear aunt Clora," Clora grinned, holding her arms out for him. Sarah handed Toby over to her, as they had all taken turns holding him at least three times each already. Clora laughed when Toby smiled at her and proceeded to make kissing noises at him. "They really are wonderful, babies that is."

Ishapell's face was one of pure tranquility as she reached out and stroked Toby's blonde curls fondly. "Children are the most precious things in the entire world of the Underground," she agreed in a way that reminded Sarah very much of Jareth. Of the two cousins, Ishapell was certainly the most like him in everything from her physical features to her manners. That was probably why Sarah didn't care for her as much.

"Sarah, what was that pet name you like to use on him again?" Clora asked.

"It's Toby, but make sure you never call him that around Jareth, he hates it," she reminded them seriously.

Clora laughed loud and bubbly. "The future King of the Goblins and the Labyrinth, Toby!"

"I've found he certainly responds a lot better to being called 'Toby' than he does anything else," Tallia commented.

Sarah smiled. "Makes sense since we've been calling him that since he was born."

Ishapell gave Sarah a look that she couldn't quite decipher, but before Sarah could make any inquiries Clora spoke up again. "I used to have a nurse that would call me C-C. She said it was short for Crazy Clora because I was so wild back then."

Sarah shrugged, "Some people down here just seem to think having a personality is crazy."

Everyone laughed but Ishapell.

She liked having Clora and Tallia around, Sarah decided, but she could have gone without Ishapell and her constant manners and corrections. She was jabbing at the female, yes, but it was only in hopes of getting her to see what a tight ass she was being and maybe either loosen up or leave. Either one would be good.

"So, I don't get it," Sarah said, turning to Clora. "You two are Jareth's cousins. Are you of the nobility like he is?"

"Yes, in a way," Clora shrugged, "I mean, both Ishapell and I are nobles but to a much lesser standing because our parents are not rulers like his are, and we are not rulers of anything either. Plus, we are unmarried so we have no assets so to speak other than what our own families have but that's still our fathers."

"It's like being in the dark ages," Sarah sighed, "With indoor plumbing."

"The underground takes a lot of useful inventions from the Aboveground, Miss," Ishapell informed her, "Then, whatever we lack in necessary supplies or manpower we make up for in magic."

Sarah turned back to Clora, preferring to talk to her over Ishapell. At least Clora would call her by name, something that even Tallia was still very uncomfortable with. "So, if you're nobles why would you agree to come here and help me like this? Not that I'm not happy to have you here…"

Clora beamed back at Sarah. "Well, to be honest, it's because the king ordered our families to order us here. Not that I'm not glad to be here as well. If I may be honest with you, Sarah…"

Sarah nodded her head for the female to continue.

"I thought you were going to be a real bore just like our cousin, or even a shrew like his last wife. I'm so happy you're not," Clora smiled.

"Clora!" Ishapell snapped without raising her voice at all.

"Wait, you knew Karen?" Sarah asked, leaning forward in her seat.

All the females exchanged confused looks.

Oh, that was right! She'd changed her name when she had come to the Aboveground. "I mean Carrie?"

They all seemed to know who she was talking about now, but Clora still looked back at Ishapell rather than Sarah. "I didn't say anything," she defended, "Just that Carrie was a right bitch and everyone knew that."

Ishapell's lips were pursed so tight they almost vanished. She was probably livid at the moment but she hid it so well, her lips and the darkened color of her eyes being the only giveaway to her mood. "And you will not say another word about it."

"Wait a second, what do you mean she was a bitch?" Sarah questioned, looking back to Clora.

Clora looked back at her like she really wanted to answer, but said nothing.

"Let's discuss something else, your majesty," Ishapell suggested, "The cooks are planning a wonderful supper of seasoned do-do bird tonight."

Sarah glared back at the female. "I don't care about supper. I want my question answered."

"His majesty has asked that we not talk about such matters. If you want to know then perhaps you should ask him," Ishapell answered back pointedly.

"Well, I'm the queen and I say you tell me." Sarah rose from her chair, her temper reaching its end with the stupid female.

Ishapell regarded her coolly. "You do not rule over his highness, who has already ordered we not speak of that subject."

"You're pretty high and mighty for a woman acting as a serving lady," Sarah bit out coldly.

Ishapell's cool green eyes raked over Sarah from top to bottom slowly. "And you are acting very trivially for a queen. I must say you are very petty."

Clora and Tallia both gasped and stared at the two women from their seats, unable to do or say anything in their shock.

Sarah had never gotten into a fight before, but she was tempted to go at it with this woman who reminded her so much of the one she hated most in the world. She had not even realized her hand was raised till Tallia screamed her name and she looked away from Ishapell. Sarah brought her hand down as soon as she realized what she was doing and looked over as Jareth and Mavid entered the room. Through it all Ishapell had not lost any of her composure.

Sarah felt her face redden and wondered if Jareth had just seen any of that. She watched his face closely for any signs of anger or annoyance, but his expression was pleasant enough as he approached them all. Tallia stood up from her seat right away and bowed low to Jareth before stepping back one or two paces. Clora remained seated since she still had Toby on her lap but nodded her head to Jareth in greeting. Ishapell curtsied.

Sarah did nothing but waited for anything as Jareth made his way to her, barely acknowledging the others. She fought to keep her back straight when he leaned in and placed a chaste kiss on her cheek, his hand coming to rest on her elbow. He looked down at his son in Clora's lap with a pleased grin. "Spending time with our son?" he questioned lightly.

 _Our_? Sarah simply nodded her head, waiting for Ishapell to tell Jareth that she was about to hit her for not going against his orders or something.

"I'm glad to see that," he said, his voice a bit more hushed as he spoke to her directly. "I thought I would come and let you know that supper is about to be served. It's seasoned do-do bird."

Sarah tried not to look back over her should her at Ishapell. "So, I've heard."

Jareth regarded her for a moment with more attention in his eyes like he could tell something was troubling her. "Mavid, go ahead and take my son and cousins to the dining hall so that you all may eat." He looked up at Tallia. "Your meal has already been sent to your room."

They all nodded and departed as quickly as possible. Ishapell didn't so much as glance at Sarah as she walked past her and followed Mavid out of the lounge room.

Sarah looked over at Jareth when they were alone. "Is something wrong?" she asked timidly.

"I could ask you the same thing," Jareth shrugged. "What did you do Sarah?"

She blanched at that. "What?"

"You have been acting like a child who got caught doing something wrong since the moment I walked into this room." He took a seat on one of the lavish couches that had been abandoned when everyone had left, crossing his ankle over his knee and leaning back in a comfortable manner. "What did you do? And remember I don't like being lied to."

Sarah stood before him feeling very much like she had back when she was five when she would have to fess up to her dad that she had done something she knew was wrong. She hated this. "I don't like Ishapell," she stated, avoiding a direct answer, "I don't want her to be one of my serving ladies anymore. All she does is upset me every chance she gets and she acts like she's better than me in every way."

Jareth let out a long sigh and leaned back further in his seat. "Sarah, I understand that you're not used to having a serving lady, but you can't allow that to cloud your judgment of the woman's character."

"Jareth, I don't dislike her because she's a serving lady. I dislike her because of how she acts towards me!"

"Lower your voice, Sarah. Ladies don't raise their voices." Jareth warned her offhandedly.

"You're just like her!" Sarah shouted in frustration before she could stop herself. She took in a deep breath to try to collect herself at the look Jareth pegged her with. "I don't care if Clora stays, but I don't want to put up with Ishapell for another second."

They were interrupted when the lounge doors opened and in came the little brownie with his cart, placing their trays and drinks down on the little table in front of Jareth without a word before leaving as quickly as he had come.

Jareth turned from her to the tray and muttered 'soup' before lifting the lid. "Sarah, she's not going anywhere. As long as she does as I ask of her and doesn't cause any trouble then there is no reason to send her away. Come and eat."

Sarah looked begrudgingly down at the bowl of steaming potato soup that sat on the only tray in front of Jareth but her stomach gave a growl that betrayed her hunger. Jareth saw the way she was eyeing his soup and held his spoon out for her to take. "You are welcome to join me."

"In here?" she asked, looking around at the lounge. It seemed odd that they weren't going to join the others in the dining room.

Jareth shrugged but continued to hold out the spoon patiently. "Sometimes the peace is just necessary."

She didn't want really to eat off the same tray as him. It just seemed too intimate. At the same time though they had done much more intimate things than just eating off the same plate, and she was rather hungry. Sarah stepped forward gingerly and reached for the spoon he offered her. She gasped but managed to keep from screaming when his other hand shot out and grabbed the wrist of the arm she had reached for the spoon with and pulled her to him, turning her around to have her sit on his lap while they ate.

Sarah tensed immediately. This was certainly far too intimate for her liking. Since he couldn't see her face now she scowled openly. "I can just sit in the chair," she said, trying to keep any that tones he would find unpleasant out of her voice and just barely succeeding.

"I don't mind you sitting here," Jareth shrugged, his arm wrapping around her waist as if to hold her in place.

Sarah looked down at the spoon clenched in her hand. Even though it was a spoon, she still envisioned twisting around and stabbing Jareth in the face with it. Sarah immediately shook her head in surprise. She had never pictured herself doing anything like that to anyone before.

But then again, she had never hated someone so much before.

She did her best to just ignore him and leaned forward as much as she could with his arms still holding her, trying to just eat in peace.

Jareth held her in his lap, content for the moment to simply hold her as he allowed her to share his own supper with him.

She was tense again. He'd felt her grow rigid as soon as he had touched her. She always did that.

He knew perfectly well that she hated it whenever he touched her and every time she tensed in his hold like this it was just another reminder of just how much she disliked his touch. He always wanted to touch her, though. She had no clue just how often he refrained from touching her because he knew it upset her. Despite his efforts to control himself though, the times that he would break down and seek any physical contact with her at all she would pull away like he was some sort of disgusting creature. It stung both his ego and his vanity, infuriating and upsetting him to no end.

He shouldn't have to put up with his own wife rejecting him all the time.

He was beautiful even among Fae standards and there were many just as beautiful women who had offered him their very souls in exchange for far less than becoming his queen. He could have taken a third wife that welcomed and begged for his touch every night and did anything he asked her to without a thought. But he had wanted the very best for his son and for his kingdom. He knew Sarah would make an exceptional mother and queen if she so wished to be, and he had planned to show her how to be a good wife as well, but she was resisting with everything she had.

He had watched her closely when she had run his labyrinth and wanted her to belong to him entirely and without question. He greatly admired her for the way her strength and love seemed to run hand in hand, and she had both in spades. Simply one of the many reasons he wanted her for his own.

He had loved it last night when he'd taken her and had been able to make her orgasm from his touch. He had gone after her two more times the previous night hoping to pleasure her again so that she might see that he was nothing to cringe away from but she had purposefully held herself back from bliss. She tried desperately at the end of each session to draw away from him before he could finish within her properly.

Sometimes it hurt him enough to make him want to completely hate her. The hatred of the goblin king was extremely dangerous for anyone or anything to invoke.

Sarah jumped in his lap and reached down to try to push against his arm around her waist, dropping the spoon onto the tray in her sudden movement. "Jareth, you're hurting me!" she gasped.

He immediately loosened his hold around her waist, having not even realized that he had tightened his grip so much. He glared at the back of her head as she sat still in his lap, her hands still clutching at his arm like she was afraid he would do it again. You hurt me first, he thought bitterly.

He leaned back in his seat with a sigh.

x

I thank you all for your patience if nothing else, but I really love that you take the time to let me know if you like parts of this story or the characters or not. I read every review I get and I only wish I had time enough to answer each one.

I got this question last time too from some readers wanting to know 'why refer to Jareth and Mavid as "males" rather than "men" ' and just wanted to address it quick.

Because 'man' and 'men'is a term used when the subject is human; which they are not. In fact, they would be offended to be refered to as man as if they are human so I use 'male' in place of that. Any moments they are refered to as man or men are mistakes on my part. I frankly dont care if its not what people are used to reading or thinking, i try to put some extra thought into how something should be written rather than simplifying or dumbing it down for comfort sake. Thank you all for giving this approach a chance.


	9. Chapter 9

Beta for this chapter is The Art Of Suicide

X

Sarah sat in the great hall by the large fireplace, which had dwindled down to nothing but smoky wood logs. She had Toby in front of her and he was standing between her knees, each hand on a knee for balance as he babbled and talked to her. She smiled and would reply but honestly she only knew half of what he was saying. Tallia was sitting on the floor behind Toby in case he fell and needed to be caught, but it didn't look like that would happen anytime soon. She was also smiling at the progress Toby was making.

"Abb-ba gob ee kab si-si!" Toby shouted at Sarah with a big grin on his face.

Sarah laughed out loud and reached forward to run her fingers down his cheek as he looked up at her in wonder and adornment. "If you say so kid."

"What did he say?" Clora asked from her seat on the couch on the other side of a low glass table set up behind Tallia.

She was relaxing there in one of her normal tight-fitted dresses, up till then looking in a mirror so she could reapply and critique her makeup. On the other end of the couch, seated on the very edge of their little group, Ishapell sat flipping though a very old and fat book. Sarah had no idea what it was or what it was about because it was in a different language and she didn't want to actually ask Ishapell. She didn't care enough and did her best to talk to the female as little as possible.

For the last two days since their first confrontation that had been her practice and it seemed like the female now didn't talk to her at all either unless it was either to correct Sarah or critique her about something. So the chatter on her part had hardly dwindled at all so to speak.

Sarah smiled up at Clora and shrugged her shoulders. "He's probably telling me about the goblins or something."

Clora nodded and went back to her primping.

Sarah was starting to become accustomed to spending time with all three of the females on a daily basis, as well as Toby. It helped the boredom greatly. But she still sometimes thought about her real friends, Hoggle, Didymus, and Ludo and missed them almost as much as she missed her family. She had no idea what had happened to them since her return. She had thought to ask Jareth the other day but he had been in an unpleasant mood and so she had not wanted to throw her friends under his radar at the time. Actually Jareth had been in a foul mood since that supper they had shared in the lounge room after she had gotten into an argument with Ishapell.

His posture was always tense and his face seemed to always be scowling. He never seemed mad at anything in particular, not even her, but his temper was noticeably shorter and seemed to draw more so each day. Last night at the dinner table they had all sat down to eat and at one point (for no apparent reason whatsoever) Jareth had just thrown his spoon down on the table, excused himself, handed Toby (who had started sitting on either Jareth's or Sarah's lap during meals) to Mavid, and stormed out of the room. When he had later come back to bed he had made no excuses and given no explanations for his behavior, but had simply placed a rather rough peck against Sarah's cheek and had flipped over to go to bed. He had not gone after her beyond that.

"I'm bored," Clora huffed all of a sudden. "We should go outside. What about you Sarah? Don't you want to go outside?"

Sarah felt her cheeks go red and looked down at Toby's soft blonde hair, already so like his father's. Did Clora actually think she had stayed inside the castle for the past three days just because she liked it in here? She wanted badly to be able to go outside, but the closest she was allowed was to go out on the deck in Jareth's room.

Ishapell didn't even glance up from her book. "Her highness has not been given permission to travel outside yet."

Sarah cast an embarrassed glare to the blonde female, who in no way acknowledged it. "Thanks," she snapped.

"You're majesty is welcome," she replied in a bored tone, not even glancing up from her book.

Sarah loved books and was against the mistreatment of them, but what she wouldn't give to take the one Ishapell was reading and smack her upside the back of the head with it! Its not like it was one she could read anyway! This female acted much too much like her husband.

"You should ask him Sarah," Clora jumped in, derailing the fight that Ishapell and Sarah were heading closer and closer to for the moment. "The next time you see our cousin you should ask him to let us all go outside."

It wasn't that she didn't want to go outside, she did. Very much. But she could just picture asking Jareth given his current mood and getting a stern 'no' thrown at her before she could even finish her sentence. That very thing had happened the other night when she had been about to ask him if he knew where the bar soap was so she could take her bath… which had ended in a little spat with her getting mad and taking her bath without any hand soap.

Regardless she still simply nodded her head so that Clora would leave the matter be for now. She looked down at Tallia, who was currently keeping her eyes on Toby so she could pick up her habit of pretending she wasn't part of the conversation at all, like she was in a different room. She knew as a servant her opinion didn't matter so she didn't bother really paying attention lest she feel inclined to speak it anyway. Sarah knew how she felt.

Everyone in the room looked up when the sound of quick footsteps echoed through the halls outside and within seconds Mavid appeared in the doorframe. He looked like he too had been brooding and like his mind was elsewhere. Maybe being around Jareth all day was rubbing off on him. "His majesty is waiting in the dining hall."

Every night they all went and ate supper together, it was a regular thing. They all got up, Tallia scooping Toby up in her arms before Sarah could to carry him, and they all headed for the door in their little lineup that had also become something regular that they all just fell into with Sarah in the lead, Clora maybe half a step behind her if not right next to her, then Ishapell at a bit of a distance, followed by Tallia and Toby. The only one who ever really changed spots was Toby because sometimes Sarah would carry him in front with her and sometimes Tallia would hold keep over him. Mavid stepped in Sarah's path though, blocking it before she could pass through the door. His eyes were very sharp and his expression gravely serious as he leaned in to just an inch or so from her face, his voice hushed but not so the others absolutely couldn't hear. "He's in a terribly foul mood today," he warned Sarah, "Perhaps you might say something pleasing when you see him? And if you have any inkling of doing or saying anything with a chance of upsetting him I would strongly have to suggest you refrain."

Sarah's eyes widened but she simply nodded her head, suddenly having lost her appetite.

X

Jareth drummed his fingers back and forth over the hard wood of the dining table rapidly, his dark grey gloves making a deeper thudding noise. He impatiently looked over his shoulder at the clock just as the dining room doors opened and Mavid stepped to the side so that the females could all enter. Sarah's eyes flashed to Jareth nervously and he rose from his seat out of manners that had been pounded into him throughout his upbringing. Sarah came up to take the seat on his left, closest to him.

As the others settled in he notice Sarah continue to glance at him nervously out of the corner of her eye like she was about to say something and was judging whether or not she should. He returned to his seat, raising a brow in speculation at her odd behavior.

She turned to him finally and licked her lips like she wasn't sure what to say.

"I like your shirt."

Jareth glanced down at his shirt in confusion, it was a simple grey in color and had extensive ruffles on the cuffs and down the front. Every one else seemed just as confused by her oddly timed complement (even Sarah to a certain degree) and she blushed, looking down at the table rather than meeting his eyes.

"Did you do something wrong I've yet to find out about today?" Jareth asked, thinking maybe she was trying to get on his good side for some reason or another.

All eyes were on them intently, waiting for what would happen next like it was a tennis tournament. It was Sarah's move and heat colored her cheeks as she looked up at all the eyes trained on her, turning back to Jareth. "N-no!" she stammered.

Jareth looked up at Ishapell and Clora but they were also watching this odd moment in confusion. Clearly they didn't know what Sarah was doing either.

He looked back to Sarah. "Why do you like this shirt?" he inquired, his voice laced with suspicion.

Her face turned even redder and for whatever reason she cast a glare in Mavid's direction. "I- I don't know, its just a compliment."

Jareth raised his brow again, his voice slow and mocking. "For a grey shirt?"

She turned to him and full out glared at him then. "Yes!" she snapped, "For your grey shirt. I know I'm new to this whole etiquette thing, but most people say 'thank you' when given a compliment. They don't make someone feel stupid for doing so. Would you have rather that I told you I actually think it's ugly and looks silly on you?"

Both of Jareth's brows shot up at that and the room took on an instant and unnaturally still quality. He could see Mavid toss his napkin onto the table out of the corner of his eye like he knew he would not be eating here tonight.

Jareth's darkened eyes were trained on Sarah when he next spoke. "Everyone. Leave. Now."

There was a hurried scraping of chairs and then the sound of people quickly filing out of the room. Then there was silence as the doors closed behind the departing. Sarah looked down at her lap, unable to look Jareth right in the eyes when he glared at her so intensely. She looked about ready to either cry or scream or all the above. Jareth rose from the table and quickly walked down the other side to the doors, he could feel Sarah's eyes on his back as he locked them. The tension in the room was thick enough to cut with a knife.

He turned back to Sarah and she once again hunched down in her seat, like that would keep him from seeing her or something.

He wasn't oblivious and he wasn't dumb, he knew that he had been in a foul mood to everyone around him lately. He felt bad about it too sometimes, like earlier when he had chewed Mavid a new one for not letting him know that the garden was finished till after lunch when it had been finished that morning. He was acting completely ogre-ish and was aware of it.

He couldn't help it though, it had all started when he had allowed himself to really think about Sarah's feelings towards him and his disposition had snowballed from there, that and the strain of running the kingdom and handling his other affairs was only adding to his frustrations. Add to that the fact that he had little more than a week and a half to get Sarah to really start acting like a lady and so far the search for a personal tutor was turning up some very unpromising results. He also hadn't had any sex whatsoever for the past three days and two nights. He couldn't have been more frustrated then if someone were following him around poking him with a stick!

Jareth reached down and started fiddling with his shirt, never taking his eyes off of Sarah.

She balked and her eyes grew wide as she continued to sit there and watch him. 'What are you doing?"

"I am going to remedy the situation," he shrugged, undoing the buttons hidden within the ruffles. "You said this shirt looks silly on me, than fine." He tore at it, sending the last few buttons flying and then he pulled it roughly from his shoulders, tossing it onto the ground.

He then made a bee-line for Sarah.

She got up from her chair as soon as she saw him coming for her and her eyes darted around like she was looking for an escape.

This brought up the anger Jareth had felt in the previous days from her resistance to his touch. Why did she react to him like he was diseased or something?! What was so wrong about him that she treated him like this? He was a troll rather than the beautiful Fae prince that he was? She could kiss a little scab like that old dwarf but refuse to be anywhere near him… his blood boiled under his skin from the heat of his anger. He hadn't done anything yet and already she was trying to escape from the room… from him. "There is no escape for you Sarah!" he shouted as he pushed a chair out of his way.

Sarah watched with terrified eyes as the chair clattered to the floor and rolled end over end from the force. She continued to back away from him quickly but he was advancing on her. _She wouldn't get far_.

Jareth blatantly looked over her body, her waist narrow and hips and breasts surging out from the corset to be hugged by the maroon colored fabric of her dress. Her hair was pinned up on her head with a delicate clip designed to look like a butterfly. He would remove that maddening dress first.

Despite her attempt to back away from him, Jareth was right there. He reached out and the second his hand made contact with her wrist she yelped like he had burned her or something. He hadn't even been rough about it!

He was now though, he squeezed down hard on her delicate wrist and pulled her closer to him. "Stop this!" he shouted in her face. Why did she have to act like that when he touched her? It drove him to the breaking point of anger every time. What was the point of resisting him and seeking pain when all he wanted to do was give her pleasure? It made no sense!

Jareth turned and led her back over to the dining table, ignoring her vain attempts to pull away from him.

"Let me go!" she shouted at him, clawing with her free hand at the one that held her captive.

 _Never_.

Jareth turned back to her and brought her up against him in a bone-crushing embrace, leaving not even half a centimeter of space between their bodies as he pressed his lips against hers and kissed her greedily. He caught her wrists without breaking from the kiss at all and brought them around behind her back, pulling her even more firmly against him as he started to move against her in a rhythm that matched the strokes of his lips and tongue over hers, forcing her to open her mouth and spread her legs for him. She did so with some coaxing and he about came undone when she moaned against him.

The wanting was obviously there but then she seemed to come back to herself and pulled against him again, her teeth finding his lip and biting down lightly in warning.

It was exciting to him though and he did not stop, turning her around so her hips were pinned between him and the table and he leaned forward till she was forced to bow backwards at an uncomfortable angle to keep from flat out laying down on the table. She bit down harder and Jareth could taste the faintest hints of sweet blood. Sarah turned her head away from him, surprised with herself and he could see the purple specks of fae blood on her lip.

He ran his tongue over his bleeding lip, stopping the slight trickle of blood. Sarah stared up at him with fear in her eyes and his blood still on her lip. No doubt she was expecting punishment for spilling his blood. Jareth would hate to disappoint.

Jareth let go of her wrists and instead turned his attention to the tear-drop buttons on her dress. The ones on this dress were located down the front of her bodice. He tore them open, pulling the bodice laces of the dress open and then reaching behind her he undid the laces located on the back of the corset. Sarah gasped in relief, as she always did when her corsets were removed. He moved back from her and lifted her onto the table, her dress sliding free down her legs to the floor and he kicked the yards of skirting under the table out of his way.

Sarah put her hands out as if to feebly stop him but he caught them and shoved them down onto the table on either side of her. "Don't fight me!" Jareth shouted, his temper getting the better of him. It was her fault he was so frustrated in the first place. She would help ease him whether she wanted to or not.

"Jareth please…."

That slight plea surprised him and caused him to pause, but only momentarily before he started kissing her neck, tasting the sweetness of her skin and sucking at it with his mouth till she was forced to moan.

When she had said his name it hadn't been anymore a whimper of fear than it was one of anger. Despite her feeble protests, she wanted him. He had heard enough moans in his lifetime to know that she had practically been begging him to continue just now. No matter what she thought about him, her body still responded to both his Fae pull and the pleasure that millennia of practice allowed him to inflict upon her.

He hooked his gloved fingers under the thin material of her panties and plunged them into her, unable to hold back the groan that escaped as his body felt a wave of excitement wash over him. Even through the gloves he could feel her heat and her soft wetness as it all soaked through the fabric to his fingers.

Sarah's head fell back as he entered her with his fingers and her legs wrapped around his hips on reflex. Whether she could admit it or not she wanted him, badly. Her body certainly did at least. Jareth's body responded in according to leave no doubts that he wanted her just as much if not more. He was already throbbing with the need to feel her clench around his shaft like she was doing now to his fingers. Jareth's thumb stroked over her clit slowly and deliberately till the fear left her eyes and they gazed over with pleasure, her mouth parting as if begging for deep kisses.

X

Sarah's head was spinning. All she had done was try to do as Mavid had suggested and say something nice to Jareth. How had they gone from a comment about his shirt to this? She shivered on the table in nothing but her remaining under things and Jareth towered over her, his fingers stroking her both inside and out and she was helpless against the pleasure she felt.

It wasn't that she could forget what all he had done to her, how he had treated her… but when he touched her and made her feel pleasure like this it was still hard to tell him no. She was only human after all, and he was so much more than that. She was lost and he knew exactly where he was leading her.

Jareth's pelvis was rubbing against the back of her thigh right next to his hand in a shadow of the way he was stroking her with his fingers, making her feel the hard length of him so that it was all she could picture as he stimulated her. The table was the perfect height for this, hitting Jareth mid-thigh so that Sarah was at just the right height for him.

Jareth didn't stop stroking with his hand or against her thigh as he leaned forward and took one of her breasts into his mouth, kissing it chastely before sucking it deep into his hot mouth. Sarah moaned and closed her eyes tight, leaning back onto her elbows on the table as she reveled in the feel. It was so strange and yet so pleasurable.

Jareth removed his fingers from her slowly and pulled down the front of his leggings, hooking the fabric under the weights between his thighs and positioning himself at her entrance. Sarah waited for him to thrust into her but he didn't. He brought himself right up against her and she felt herself tighten in anticipation, but he refrained from actually entering her. Sarah looked up into his intense, calculating eyes.

"Tell me you want me," he directed, his tone dead serious.

Sarah couldn't help the slight outrage she felt. She wanted him to continue with everything she had and hated herself for it. He was a monster, he was awful towards her, he would terrorize and rape her at his leisure. Was it so wrong for her to covet the few times he would actually make her feel good? She felt frustrated and upset because she wasn't sure what she should do. She knew she should tell him to fuck off, to get his hands off her and leave her alone. But she didn't want him to stop. She wanted him to continue what he was doing.

Jareth's hands gripped the backside of her knees and brought her legs up roughly so she was forced to lay down for comfort sake, bringing her full attention back on him. He pushed against her but didn't enter her still. "Say you want me." He was starting to get angry, she could see it in his eyes.

"I…" she fought back her tears of frustration. She couldn't say it, it was too humiliating. She closed her eyes tight, trying to take her mind out of it. "I want you," she said in barely more than a whisper.

There was a pause in which she couldn't bare to look at Jareth, she could feel the hostility coming off of him. "Look at me Sarah," he demanded, "Look at me when you say it."

Her cheeks heated in her embarrassed anger. He wasn't going to let her get off that easily to be able to just close her eyes and forget that it was him she was wanting. She turned her head away from him stubbornly.

Jareth dropped one of her legs roughly at that and Sarah could feel him reach down to reposition himself at a different entrance. She let out a shout of protest and bucked widely against him, trying to get away. She certainly didn't want him in that way.

Jareth released her other leg and gripped her hips hard enough to leave bruises, but she kept from crying out in pain from that. "Alright I'll say it, but not there please!"

Jareth glared down at her, malice and dark promises in his eyes as he waited.

Sarah forced herself to meet his eyes, thankful that tears were able to cloud her vision a bit so she wouldn't have to clearly see him as the words left her. "I w-want you," she said pitifully.

Jareth's eyes lost none of their intensity and he was still as stone for a moment as he stared down at her. Sarah held back her tears and waited for the worst. She had done as he had asked damn it.

She was caught off guard as Jareth slowly leaned forward over her, his hands leaving their crushing embrace on her hips to slide gently behind her back, pulling her up from the table into a sitting position and bringing him up against his chest. His hold was extremely tentative and he brushed his lips over the side of her cheek, then kissed each of her eye lids before he kissed her mouth. Unlike his previous kisses, this one was slow and rather chaste, all lips and no tongue. Only once she caught onto his rhythm did he deepen the kiss but it was still slow and undemanding. Sarah felt even more surprised when she realized that her arms had snaked around his shoulders, holding him to her in response. She had never been kissed like this before in her life, and was surprised Jareth was even capable of such kisses.

He didn't draw back from the kiss at all as he slowly entered her, his hands dropping to cup her ass lightly so she couldn't move back. Sarah didn't want to stop the surprisingly sweet kiss, but couldn't help but break away as a moan bellowed up from deep in her throat. He was moving very slowly and deliberately in and out of her and she could feel every inch of him very clearly. It was very new to her and the only words she could think to describe it as was 'making love'. Jareth had only ever fucked her before. There was a big difference though and she was learning it now.

Jareth moved to her neck, his lips caressing it in the same way he had just demonstrated on her mouth. He kept up the slow rhythm. "Say it again," he instructed. Even his voice was softer all of a sudden, making her forget momentarily all about his previous harshness towards her.

Sarah felt lost in the sensation of his length sliding in and out of her slowly and deliberately, his lips sucking at her neck and his firm and warm chest pressed up against her breasts. His hand stroked her back lightly, tickling the sensitive nerves there. It all felt so good and she wanted more despite herself. "I want you," she said, barely noticing that her voice sounded a lot throatier.

Jareth moaned against her neck, the vibrations running through her from it and drawing another moan from her lips as he picked up the pace just slightly. That felt even better and she wrapped her legs around his hips, wanting him to go even faster. He obliged her, his strokes staying long but his hips swinging faster. He leaned into her more, causing her to lay back on the table surface again. This put his head at level with her breasts and he gripped them lightly in his hands, feeling their slight weight as he placed a delicate kiss in the valley between them.

Sarah clung to his shoulders as his breathing grew harder and his hips moved faster and more forcefully against her. She could feel that pressure building again, hot and heavy inside her as they moved closer to climax.

Sarah let out a scream of fright and Jareth faltered in his momentum as a thunderous banging sounded on the dining hall doors. "Son of a harlot!" Jareth cussed harshly.

He looked up at the doors with pure fury on his face and Sarah prayed that whoever was there ran now for their own sake. The doorknobs turned as someone attempted to force their way in and Sarah jumped again in alarm, her hands flying up to cover her breasts as the person on the other side found the doors to be locked. Jareth grabbed her before she even realized what he was doing and pulled her from the table onto the floor roughly, ripping the tablecloth from the table, knocking over the candles that formed a line down the middle and Sarah cringed when one hit the floor hard right next to her. Jareth draped the red cloth over her since there was no time for her dress and Sarah wrapped it around herself as best she could just before there was a popping sound that filled the room and the double doors swung open with a bang. Jareth quickly adjusted his pants, his erection still obvious under the thin material.

Sarah turned around and gaped as a tall and lean man strode into the room as if he owned the place. She had never seen him before, but judging by his pointed facial features and the air of magic he had about him he was also of the Fae. His eyes were sharp and looked almost black, his mouth set in a thin line and his dark hair had a prominent widow's peak. A silver band circled his head and his robes were colored deep purple with a collar that stood up just an inch or so higher than his head. Behind him walked an even taller male with a pointed face and hair the color of snow pulled onto the crown of his head in a tight bun. There was a little smirk on his lips as his eyes landed on Jareth.

Mavid was hurrying in behind them, a look of complete apology and helplessness to stop them on his face as he met Jareth's outraged glare. Jareth moved forward like a tiger about to strike, cutting off the males' advances before they could get too close to where Sarah still sat covered in a table cloth on the floor. For a male that was half naked and had just been caught in a vulnerable moment Jareth's strong stance spoke to the king he was. And right now he was a seriously outraged king.

"What in the fifth side of hell are you doing here, father?!" Jareth demanded, his voice deep and threatening in his anger.

Sarah's eyes practically bugged out of her skull and she felt her blush spread though her entire body. This man was Jareth's father?! She had just been walked in on by Jareth's father! The male didn't even seem to realize she was there, or at least he didn't acknowledge her at all. Both Mavid and the other male, however, were taking in both Jareth's state of undress and then looking over her with knowing eyes. In Mavid's case there was also a polite level of appreciation in his stare despite the fact that she was covered. At that moment her mortification was complete and she could have died from embarrassment.

"I was approached by several members of the order today inquiring about rumors that are circling the Fae saying that you have taken on another human bride. Your mother was mortified and frankly I couldn't have been more embarrassed myself. This was supposed to be kept between just the family and the counsel for now till the end of next week!" the king growled at Jareth, furry reined in tightly.

Jareth bulked and cast a look back at Sarah that she couldn't decipher. "Here is not the place for this father," his tone was a lot meeker then, Sarah would almost say he was pleading if she didn't know better. "We can discuss this in my office, away from prying ears."

Sarah shot a glare at the back of his head at that. He spoke as if she was eaves-dropping!

The male looked like he wasn't going to relent for a moment, but the taller one with white hair behind him cleared his throat. "Such would be prudent my lord," the male prompted him. Jareth's father paused for a moment, weighing his options before he finally nodded his head and lost a little of his imposing aura.

"I will escort you there my liege," Mavid said in a flat tone, bowing his head in submission.

"Let me tend to my wife and then I will be there shortly," Jareth assured the male.

With another pause and a final nod of his head Jareth's father turned and allowed Mavid to lead both him and the other male from the dining room. Neither Jareth nor Sarah moved a muscle till the door swung closed behind them as they left.

Sarah jumped when Jareth let out a frustrated growl and turned sharply to her. His stance was harsh and imposing again as he stalked back over to her and grabbed up her dress from the floor.

"What was that?" Sarah asked, still behind on what had just happened.

"Nothing for you to worry about," Jareth snapped, back to his usual foul mood.

The hell it wasn't. It was about her wasn't it? They were keeping her marriage to Jareth a secrete? Why? What did it matter now that she was officially married to him?

Jareth held her dress out impatiently and she got up off the floor to step into it. He jerkingly pulled it up the length of her body, the tenderness from before gone from his demeanor. He didn't bother with the corset and Sarah didn't bother reminding him. She reached out and placed her hands on his shoulders for balance as he redid the bindings on the front of the bodice quickly. "Jareth what happens at the end of next week?" she asked.

Jareth's eyes snapped up to her. "What?"

"He said to keep it hushed till the end of next week, why then?"

"I already told you this is none of your concern," he snapped again at her. "I want you to go back to our room and wait for me there. I will try to be quick." he gave the bindings a final jerk and then turned away from her, taking long strides over to the door.

Sarah gathered up her skirts and hurried after him, her feet bare on the floor allowing her to keep up. "This is about me so it is my concern Jareth!" she insisted, knowing that something important was being kept from her.

Jareth turned and pegged her with a hard stare but she refused to flinch. "Now is not the time to defy me Sarah," he whispered, his voice full of blatant warning.

He grabbed her arm and led her out of the dining room, giving her a shove in the direction of their room. She glared at him with tears in her eyes once more as he turned and headed down the hall in the opposite direction. She absolutely hated him.

X

Jareth was in a dangerous state as he hurried down the winding halls towards his study. Surprisingly (and luckily for them) no goblins crossed his path as he stormed through the castle. If he was frustrated before now he was just flat out enraged. He had been so close to an orgasm before his father had stormed in, bitching about nonsense like it was the most important thing in the world that the Fae not find out about his marriage. He had no right! Okay, technically he did, but Jareth was still pissed off from it, his sac throbbing painfully with each step he took only compounding his horrid temper. He was still shirtless but damn if he cared.

Then his father had almost let slip what was happening in front of Sarah. If she knew that behaving as she did now in front of the counsel in two weeks would earn her a divorce…

He shuddered to think about how defiant she would behave then.

He slammed his hand against the door of his study, forcing the door to swing wide open for him as he stormed in. Of all the nerve… his father sat in his seat behind the desk! Jareth set his father with a level stare, but the male simply returned it.

"Why are their rumors going about the Fae about your marriage son?" Hamold growled out.

Jareth gave a nonchalant shrug, "Could be because I really did take on a human girl for my wife, father. Did you really think no one would find out if I said nothing? Maybe one of your nieces said something before coming to this castle, or maybe my goblins started gossiping again, news is about the only thing that is able to fly freely throughout the walls of my kingdom."

Mavid and Erib both stood back against the side wall of the room, pretending (as was proper) to be nothing more than flies on the wall.

"Do you realize the position you have put this family in with your reckless actions?! The embarrassment we all will suffer if she fails to impress the counsel? Another divorce just a couple weeks after marrying and then they would all of course find out that she is to become a servant should such events take place. It is beyond disgraceful. If it were just your own person hanging on the line I would sit back and laugh as you got what was coming to you!"

"What makes you so sure she will fail to impress the counsel?" Jareth snarled. "You have never even met her."

"I have seen her though, sitting on the floor just now in nothing but a napkin! And the rumors are saying that she is quite the brat. Defiant and spiteful towards you." The king regarded his son from under hooded lids. "They are also saying that you are just allowing her to do so."

Jareth scowled at that. "I can assure you I am not 'allowing her to do so'."

"So she really isn't mindful of you then?" The king prompted, reading between the lines.

Jareth fought the urge to look away but didn't have an answer for his father. Not one he wanted to admit to anyway. "I have it under control father."

"I'm sure," the king sighed in disbelief. "Have the girls at least been helping her to learn our customs so that she does not make a complete fool out of you?"

Jareth fought back his outrage, biting down on his temper for the time being. "They are prompting her from what I have seen; Ishapell has at least. I am looking into finding a tutor for her though."

The king nodded his head to show he agreed that that would be for the best. "Have you sought out the counsel of Rally for the girl?"

"No, not particularly," Jareth frowned. "While she does know the proper etiquette of the Fae inside and out her methods of teaching are known to be rather harsh."

The king shrugged and stood up from his seat - Jareth's seat. "Desperate times… I'll leave it up to you for the moment, but do keep her in mind for the girl. Rumors of your marriage to a human are bad enough, but talk that you let her run all over you… now that is far too much to bare."

Jareth stared down at the top of his desk and held his tongue as best he could in hopes that limited responses would encourage his father to leave quicker. It was far from unheard of for those of the Fae to mate with human men and women, such was very common actually for the purposes of legitimate issue that could carry on the powers of the Fae. It was also not unheard of, but certainly more rare for a member of the Fae to take on a human as a spouse. Even more so for one of the aristocracy to do so.

Jareth could still remember all the talk in the court and everywhere else throughout the kingdoms when he had made Carrie his wife. For someone so common and so powerless to be made into a queen was shocking and a bit upsetting. A lot of the elders and some of the females of the Fae had spoken wickedly and said that he was turning his back on his people to give such an honored position to one so unworthy. There were other, worse rumors too and he remembered a couple reaching Carrie and upsetting her. He could only imagine what would be said now that his third wife was also human.

"If you are finished father it is getting late."

"The king leaves only when he wants to," Erib commented sharply, casting a side-ways glance at Jareth.

Jareth moved forward, ready to tell Erib off but Hamold stepped between them. "That is enough Jareth!" the king snapped, fixing his son with one of his infamous glares, "We are leaving now, but I expect you to do your part in stopping these rumors from growing. Laying with a few courtiers might help the Fae think the rumors to be just talk for the next week or so."

Jareth rolled his eyes. "Good night father." He reached over and pushed the window open to illustrate his it's-time-for-you-to-leave point.

The king continued to glower at Jareth as he made his way past him towards the window, his chin held high in superiority. "I hope you come to truly consider what you are doing here with this girl before it is too late to take anything back, my son."

Without another word the king shape shifted from his Fae form down into the body of a hawk, taking off into the darkening sky in flight, leaving behind only a single brown feather.

Jareth and Mavid both looked back at Erib with matching scowls. Erib smirked and lifted a hand in front of him. "I know my own way out," he assured them before backing out of the room through the door.

Shape shifting was a rare and powerful talent that only certain families of the Fae carried, Jareth was lucky to have had it passed onto him from his father's side. His mother was unable and there were very few of the court that could, he was only acquaintances with one other male who was able to change into a dove at will without becoming as easily exhausted from it as Jareth and his father were. Birds were the most typical animal for shape shifters to take, normally things like ravens and magpies. There were many different magical talents like that that would run through different blood lines though. Even Mavid's servant's blood carried one special gift to it that was foreign to Jareth's abilities.

Mavid turned back to Jareth after locking the door behind the other male. "Did you want me to look into having Rally come out to tutor the girl?"

Jareth let out a sigh he hadn't realized he'd been holding in and ran his hands through his messy hair, feeling strung out and tight all over in his own skin. He needed to relax. His mind kept turning to Sarah though and before in the dining hall and he could barely think straight. "No," he sighed, remembering that Mavid had asked him a question. "I'll try a few others first, but tonight I am to be left alone with my wife."

"The moon is out tonight and the garden is completed," Mavid mentioned in almost an offhand tone. Jareth smirked and opted to not respond as he went to the window. Sometimes it was scary just how well Mavid knew Jareth.

Jareth leapt from the window and turned into his barn owl form, swooping to the left and heading towards his room tower where Sarah would be waiting for him. He had unfinished business with her after all.

X

Sarah contemplated shoving her desk chair up under her door handle to barricade Jareth from her room as she sat on her bed and waited. After Jareth had run off to his study she had made her way back to her own room, shucking the bothersome dress and changing into one of her simple and light nightgowns. This one was actually sleeveless and the soft white fabric hung down to her knees. It was a breath of fresh air after being cooped up in those corsets and dresses all day.

Jareth was definitely hiding something from her. He had drastically changed his tone when his father had hinted at something happening next week. She didn't know what, but she knew she didn't want to stay long enough to find out. For Jareth to be so worried about her hearing their conversation it couldn't be anything that she would take well.

Sarah jumped when she heard a loud flapping noise and an all too familiar owl landed on her window sill right next to her head. She quickly moved back from it across the bed and watched in startled anger as the owl looked right at her before taking a short flight down to the floor in front of her bed. With a fluttering of wings Sarah watched in slight amazement as the features of the owl twisted, warped, and grew till Jareth was standing before her, still shirtless and still looking rather irritated.

Barricading her door obviously wouldn't have mattered.

"Come with me, I have a surprise for you." He didn't wait for her to agree, simply turning and going to the door to the hall.

Sarah sat up on her knees in indignant anger. "What?! What do you mean? What just happened with your father?" She didn't want to follow him anywhere without knowing where they were going and what for. She certainly didn't trust him enough for that sort of blind faith. Much less when there was something going on that concerned her and she knew nothing about it.

"Either follow me now out into the garden or you may spend the rest of tomorrow in this room." He didn't even bother to glance back over his shoulder, simply leaving the door open behind him and intrusting her to follow him.

Sarah let out a frustrated growl and clambered off her bed, padding in her bare feet across the floor after him. "That's not fair!" she huffed under her breath so he wouldn't hear her. Every time he heard her say that he simply scoffed at her.

She made her way down the stone hallways, minding where she stepped as best she could in the darkening paths. Jareth reached back when she was close enough to take her hand, helping to guide her along.

"Why are we going out to the garden at night?" she asked, hoping maybe he would at least tell her that much.

"It relaxes me," he simply said. "I didn't get a chance to earlier and the weeks are growing short before coldness will set in and force the plants to sleep."

Sarah tried to remember her way as much as possible as he led them along a hall and turned the corner. The corridor before her was pitch black, nothing but shadows and whispers that were very imposing and somewhat frightening. She couldn't even tell just how far it went, but she didn't want to go down there.

Jareth pulled a crystal out of thin air and tossed it ahead of them into the darkness. With a pop the corridor was lit up like a Christmas tree and Sarah blinked rapidly against the sudden light, having to eventually turn away. When she was able to she turned back to see that there was actually no corridor at all, but a simple wooden door right there on the wall. Nothing was what it seemed in this place.

Jareth turned the handle and the door swung open easily. Revealing a stone pathway surrounded by plants of every shape and color. Jareth stepped back and extended his arm out in a gesture to let her know to go ahead. She stared at what she could see in the dim lighting at first, wondering just how it all looked in the light as she marveled at a bush covered in pink fuzzy leaves. She stepped out onto the stones slowly, falling back with a gasp into Jareth's strong arms when the pink bush seemed to explode in front of her!

Jareth laughed softly and she looked up to see two large bird-like creatures covered in pink fuzz fly on shaky wings further out into the garden, leaving nothing but a stick where the 'bush' had been.

Jareth continued to chuckle lightly as he helped her back onto her feet. "Maybe I'll lead then," he teased as he stepped past her, taking her hand in his and wrapping his arm around her waist.

She allowed him to lead her into the garden, the moon lighting their way well enough as they went along. He went at a slow pace for her benefit, allowing her to look around at the different plants to a certain extent. Some were bizarre and completely abstract. Some she questioned what they actually were since they didn't look like plants at all. She could recognize a few plants as being the same as in the Aboveground though. Everything was so overgrown and ran wild, nearly swallowing up the path in some places.

Jareth came to a stop in front of a particularly nasty looking little tree with black bark and thorns the size of Sarah's pinky finger growing out of it rather than leafs. Jareth let go of Sarah's hand but kept his arm around her as he brought up his now free hand and made a gesture as if waving off the tree like he would dismiss a servant or something. To Sarah's amazement the tree shifted and rustled and slowly moved out of Jareth's way, revealing a smaller path hidden behind it off the regular trail.

Jareth pulled Sarah with him past the thorn tree, which slowly moved back into place after they had safely passed by. Sarah could see something much larger just ahead of them, from the size and the way the branches hung down in a thick wall she could figure out that it was a weeping willow like the ones located in the Aboveground, except this was much larger. Jareth led her to it and pulled back the vine curtain that was created, Sarah hesitated. Jareth said nothing but simply pushed her along inside gently and followed right behind. The trunk was massive, wide enough that she wouldn't have been able to reach around even half of it if she tried. The moon was blocked out mostly by the thick vines, but Sarah could still make out that they fell from way up high above their heads.

"How did it get so big?" Sarah found herself asking out loud.

She didn't have to look back to know that Jareth was smiling now, it was in his voice. "Plants are able to flourish here in ways that man has forgotten since there is little chemicals here to harm them and stunt their growth. And we do not hack down all our forests like humans seem to take pleasure in doing." He reached out and took Sarah's hand in his again, "Come on, what I wanted to show you is on the other side of the willow."

She didn't protest, merely followed along behind him as he led her out the other side of the tree's enclave. Jareth broke out into a full grin as he pulled her along. "Inside the willow's vines is an excellent place to go when you want to completely forget about and hide from the world, but on this side…"

Sarah gasped in astonishment when he led her though to the other side. Nothing she had seen so far compared to the view before her. How something like this survived in the center of the goblin city was beyond her. There was a dip down into a little open meadow area from where they stood by the willow. The grass long and soft looking and thick on the ground like a blanket. There were different flowering plants surrounding the meadow and filling it with sweet and heady scents while little fairies with the full moon shimmering on their wings flew around and tended to them. At their approach a large silver horse that had been on the edge of the clearing startled and let out a warning whinny before spreading out its massive wings that had been folded up against its body and taking off over the tops of the plants that reached up for it almost before Sarah had even realized what she had seen.

"This is the best place to take in the joys of the world," Jareth sighed whistfully. "It is my most favorite spot in the whole Underground."

"Was that a Pegasus?!" Sarah gasped, gaping up at Jareth.

He smirked down at her. "Yes it was, one of four that I own."

"You own them?!"

"Really Sarah if you are going to be shocked by every little thing… one would think that you would put a little more faith in magic since you seemed more than ready to do so when you ran my labyrinth. Yes I own them. I even helped in breaking three of them and am currently trying to do so with the fourth. They make excellent transpertaion after all."

Sarah tried to hide her displeasure at that. How could he stand to break in something that was so beautiful and naturally wild?

That thought immediately depressed her.

"What keeps them from simply taking off and leaving you?"

Jareth chuckled at that. "They can't leave my garden because they do not know the way out." He made it sound like the simplest thing in the world.

Sarah looked up at the night sky. "But there are no walls. They could just fly up into the sky and go."

Jareth shook his head like it was silly to even think that. "This garden is just another part of my labyrinth Sarah. They can not leave if they do not know the way out. The magic in the labyrinth has ways of keeping in all who do not know it's exits. There are other walls in life rather than just those made of stones and mortar. Quite a few of the inhabitants of the labyrinth will often create their own walls to keep from leaving."

He was speaking in riddles again and she hated it. No matter what tricks he spoke of, she would find her way out of the labyrinth.

Jareth tugged on her hand and she forced the frown from her face quickly as she followed him down to the center of the meadow, the grass remarkably soft under her bare feet in a way that was unnatural compared to the Aboveground. She felt like she was walking across an incredibly large bed.

"I'm allowing you to come out here into the garden from now on whenever you wish Sarah," Jareth informed her, turning around to gage her reaction. She could tell right away he was seeking gratitude.

"T-thank you," she stammered out, still in awe from the scene around her and still slightly confused about what he had said about walls.

Jareth nodded his head in acknowledgement and continued on his way to the center. It didn't go unnoticed by Sarah that the little white fairies had become much scarcer, only a few still settled on the plants and in the flowers, watching their lord and lady. "You wont be able to come to this spot without my help, but I don't think I would appreciate you bringing others here anyway. You are welcome to the rest of the garden though and can explore to your leisure provided you behave yourself and mind me."

They reached the center and Jareth stopped and turned back to her, his hair silver and skin smooth as alabaster in the moonlight. He was hauntingly beautiful as he stood before her. She almost wanted to reach out and touch his chest just to make sure he was real.

She refrained.

His beautiful mismatched eyes looked into hers as he pulled her into his arms. Sarah felt him through both his leggings and her nightgown and stilled at his obvious intentions. Even the dark intensity was back in his eyes, causing a single shiver to shoot through her spine. She didn't move when one of his hands brushed over her cheek lightly. "You are breathtaking in this light Sarah," he murmured, "Your skin is so pale and your eyes and hair are dark. I can also see the outline of your body through that nightgown from the moon's light."

Her heart drummed in her ears, rushing around her head. This was like something out of her stepmother's old cheesy romance novels that Sarah had glanced through once she had found out there was more in them than just kissing. In a different situation it might have been terribly romantic to be standing in a place like this with a man. But this wasn't a romance, and Jareth was no heroic sensitive Adonis of a man. Jareth was the evil trickster that created conflict and was eventually slain by the end of the story by the heroine's true love. Sarah didn't have a hero though, it was just her and Jareth.

She couldn't hold back her bitterness at the unfairness of it. "Why do you do this?" she demanded, her voice just on the edge of whining. "Why are you only nice to me when you want sex and then cruel and evil the rest of the time?! I don't like it at all."

Jareth leaned back from her slowly, a frown coming to his face.

Sarah pressed on, moving out of his embrace and he allowed her to do so. "You don't care about me at all except for sex and for Toby. That's right -I called him Toby! And I call him Toby all the time when you're not around. That's his name!" She was practically shouting now, shaking all over from her sudden emotional state. "I shouldn't be here, and not just here in the garden but with you! I don't belong in this world and you don't seem to understand that and if you do you don't care!"

Her breathing was ragged and she wasn't sure what hurt worse, the tightness in her throat or in her chest. She was sure it would make Jareth mad at her, but she had to go on or she would burst. "I'm only here in the first place because of a grudge you had against my step-mother. I'm not her though! You can't bring me here and force me to pay for her mistakes. I don't care what some silly counsel or you say, that is just not fair and you can't force me to think that it is." Her face burned and her head was spinning from all the anger and sadness swirling around in her like a twister, devastating and destroying her from the inside. Her eyes burned and she could feel wet tears on her cheeks but she didn't even realize she was crying.

Jareth stood where he was and said nothing, did nothing. He simply stared back at her, completely calm as he observed her.

It only added to her emotional trauma that caused her to really feel like she was completely losing control and he felt nothing for her, not even anger at her words. If he was really her husband shouldn't he care?

"Why are you just standing there and staring at me like that!?" she screamed at him, her voice cracking from the force of her lungs. She was left gasping for air past her sore throat. "Why don't you care at all about what you are doing to me?" her voice was much more horse when she spoke.

Jareth's face was it's same emotionless mask as he continued to stare back at her. After long last his arms spread out in a welcoming gesture, inviting her to him.

The sadness overrode the anger at long last and Sarah sank to her knees on the grass, her chest hurting like it would crack open and harsh sobs shaking her body mercilessly till she was sore and tired all over, but she still couldn't stop.

Jareth went to her immediately and pulled her into his arms, stroking his hands down her hair and back in a calming gesture much like her father used to do when she was upset like this. She ached to push him off of her almost as much as she ached to hold onto him. He really was all she had here. She cried pitifully into his chest and he allowed her to do so, holding her all the tighter to him when her arms wrapped around his waist.

"A-are you m-m-mad?" she gasped out between her sobs when they finally started to die down some. For all she had said she was surprised that he hadn't beaten her to within an inch of her life yet.

Jareth let out a long sigh of his own but continued to hold her and comfort her. "No Sarah I am not mad. You've had your fit and now you are done, that's all there is to it." He pulled away enough to sit down on the ground, pulling Sarah to sit between his legs, her shoulder and part of her back resting against his chest. His cheek rested against her head. "Besides, how can I be mad when it is the thought that I don't care about you that upsets you so much? It's flattering and humbling at the same time to know you hold such value to my sympathetic natures to spill this many tears over them."

Sarah scowled past her tears, turning her head to glare at him as best she could. "That wasn't why I was upset!"

"Wasn't it?" he asked in a casual tone, "I heard you shouting that I don't care about you quite a bit, you seemed very upset about it. You also seemed deeply hurt by the thought that maybe I only want you because of the mother you can make for my son and for your company in my bed. None of these notions of yours are true Sarah, not at all." He kissed her forehead before she could move away.

"If I wanted you only for my son, why do I bother spending time with you? I don't seek out the company of the nurse do I? And if I only wanted you for sex why would I allow you around my son? Why would I marry you if I could simply have sex with you? I wouldn't have to be married to you for that. If I didn't care about you why am I holding you while you cry?"

"Stop twisting the truth," she demanded meekly.

"I am not twisting the truth precious, I am trying to show it to you and you are twisting away from me. I don't think you realize just how much I do for you because I care about you. I love you Sarah, I am not punishing you for Carrie's offenses unto me. You were brought here out of revenge true, something I would have done even had I not fallen in love with you. But you are my queen, my wife, because of my feelings towards you and you alone. If you would only stop twisting away from what I offer you like you do the truth than I know you would live in happiness by my side."

It wasn't true. None of it! She couldn't think with him confusing her like this. "You abuse me," she insisted.

"You are clinging onto thin strings, Precious. I do no such thing. Do I walk about and strike you, kick you for no reason? Do I come up to you when you are doing something mundane like reading or washing and throttle you or call you vulgar names when you have done nothing to me first? No, I do not and would not. I punish you when you are bad to me and I try to make the punishments fit the offenses. After which I forgive you for any offense and move on. You however are very cruel to me," he bit out, looking caught between emotions of anger and sadness himself.

"What?" Sarah asked in disbeleif.

"You will be angry with me the second I walk into a room, or even if I should cross your thoughts. I don't have to do anything to deserve your wrath and scorn. How fair is that?"

"I-

"And now I am out here with you, being nothing if not nice to you. I am sharing a piece of my world with you and your first response is to yell and scream at me, telling me I care nothing for you. Something doesn't add up there Sarah." He sounded impossibly tired as he spoke, leaning on her once more as they sat under the full moon with the silver fairies flashing their wings in the background among the flowers.

She was still mad, but at this point she couldn't think straight enough to yell anything coherent at him. She knew he was wrong, he had to be.

Jareth reached forward and hooked his fingers under her chin, making her look back at him as much as their position allowed her to, his face less than an inch from hers. "Is it really so terrible being my queen Sarah?" The look in his eyes was extremely vulnerable as he searched her own orbs, seeking answers to an impossibly hard question. Despite what she had felt about him moments ago, and what she would come to feel about him in time yet to pass, at that moment she couldn't bare to turn away from him as his soft lips found hers.

She was impossibly lonely and in need of things she couldn't even understand enough to name yet. She didn't love Jareth, she hardly even liked him, but she didn't have it in her to keep from responding to his chaste kiss, even when it deepened and his hands slid under the hem of her night gown to caress more sensitive parts of her. It would have been far to cruel of her to deny them both at that moment.


	10. Chapter 10

Beta reader for this chapter is The Art Of Suicide

X

The garden had been beautiful last night, but during the day in the light of the sky it was breath taking. All the colors were so much more vibrant and more of the flowers were in bloom. Everything looked and felt just so much more alive in the sun than it had in the pale light of the moon.

Since Jareth had given her permission last night to go out into the garden whenever she wished she had ventured out here as soon as Clora and Ishapell had finished dressing her. She had wanted to bring Toby along too, but Jareth had already laid claim to him for the day, insisting that he had been neglecting spending any real time with his son despite the fact that he saw him every day and held him sometimes from supper to bed time. Sarah had agreed though and so it had just been the three of them out in the garden.

The breeze was a tad cold and Sarah wrapped her shawl around her a little tighter as she walked along the stone paths. She tried to be as causal as possible as she went along, pretending to be looking at the plants rather than for a way out of here. Despite everything Jareth had said to her the night before, she just couldn't believe that he really did love her. He viewed her and maybe even loved her in the same way one would a pet, as something to own and cherish but be a constant superior to and lord over. She was just one of his many subjects really, except he carried a sort of obsession for her.

He understood nothing about her and was fascinated by that, like a child holding a butterfly. If she didn't get away soon he would crush her wings and she would die.

"Sarah, can't we go in yet?!" Clora whined for the fiftieth time, "We've been out here all morning and it's cold."

Sarah looked over her shoulder at Clora, the female was dressed in one of her usual body-hugging dresses that left both her arms and shoulders bare. She hadn't brought any kind of wrap out with her though. "You were the one who wanted to come outside so badly yesterday," Sarah reminded her.

"I didn't know we'd be taking a ten mile hike though! This is so boring," Clora whined.

Sarah liked the girl, but she was a bit on the spoiled side, not liking anything that she deemed too boring. She had been okay out here for the first hour or so till she had lost interest and started whining and suggesting other things they could do that might be more fun inside. Sarah might have obliged her enough to head in if she weren't busy looking for her way out. They had been out in the garden for the better part of the afternoon though and she hadn't even seen any walls. She wished she could leave the path to look, but she didn't want them to get suspicious of her.

If Ishapell was disliking her time spent out here she was saying nothing about it, simply following along behind the two and glancing over at the plants now and then. She had little need of a shawl since her stuffy dresses covered all of her skin.

"Just a little while longer, you two," Sarah shrugged. "But if you want to go back inside you can and I'll be there in a minute," she suggested, hoping that maybe they would leave her be so she could look more thoroughly.

Clora let out a defeated sigh and trudged along after Sarah down the path, obviously not about to go inside without her. Ishapell followed right behind.

"We could at least do something to make this fun then," Clora spoke up as Sarah pressed on down the narrow path. "What if we played a game?"

Sarah laughed at the red-head's incessant need for amusement. "A game?"

"Yes a game, we could play I spy, or maybe even follow the leader or something."

"Something tells me if we made you the leader you would lead us straight back to the castle," Sarah laughed.

"Well you never know till we play do you?" Clora asked with a big grin on her face. "My feet are killing me!"

Sarah heard that. She stopped and looked around her as if making sure they weren't being watched before stopping in the middle of the trail. She turned around to face Jareth's puzzled cousins. "Are your feet hurting too Ishapell?"

The blonde female raised a confused brow at Sarah's sudden question towards her. Sarah had gone without saying anything directly to the female for the better part of the last three days. "Um, yes your majesty."

"Why?" Clora asked, wondering why Sarah was acting so strangely all of a sudden.

Sarah smiled mischievously and lifted up the hem of her skirts so the two could see her feet. Very slowly and deliberately she lifted one of her feet out of her shoe. The two female's eyes widened as they watched like she had just performed a magic trick or something. They looked back up to meet her eyes. "I won't tell if you won't," Sarah invited with a sly smile.

"Such is not proper!" Ishapell insisted in disbelief.

"Feels good though," Clora sighed, she lifted up her own skirts to show she had already taken Sarah's lead and shifted out of her own shoes, which lay on the ground in front of her feet. She returned Sarah's grin.

Ishapell gave an all but defeated sigh next to her more brazen cousin.

Clora smiled up at the tall blonde, "Oh come on Ishapell, no one is going to find out. It's just us here and Sarah and I won't tell if you take yours off too."

Ishapell didn't move at all, continuing to just stare down at the path in front of her, debating. Finally she let out a sigh and took a step to the side, becoming about two inches shorter in the one easy pivot. She pulled back her skirts and scooped her shoes up into her hands without a word; not even as much as a relieved sigh.

Clora and Sarah grinned at each other.

X

"Nobody knew, what kind of magic spell to use. Slime or snails, or puppy dog tails, thunder or lighting and baby said…" Jareth bounced his son playfully on his hip, pivoting quickly about the room in time with his song to the absolute delight of his son. Little Jareth squealed with laughter as Jareth turned this way and that, moving documents he had been looking into from his desk back to his private library that was connected to his study as he did so.

He was spending the day with his son, but he still needed to get work done, so he was simply trying to keep Little Jareth amused as he did his boring routine. Truthfully it was lifting his spirits about having to do the work as well. Every once in a while Mavid would look up at Jareth and his lip would curl up into a smile before he went back to his own work. "You're certainly in a good mood today," he observed.

Jareth did another spin that caused his babe to scream in delight before taking a seat in his chair once more, moving Little Jareth to the edge of his knee to bounce him. "Dance magic dance -and why shouldn't I be? I am spending the day with my son -jump magic jump!"

Mavid grinned at that, "Not to mention last night with the queen, huh?"

Jareth grinned too despite himself. "That's none of your business whatsoever. I do, however, think I might have actually made some ground with her. I think it could be a good while before she disobeys me again." He turned back to Little Jareth and continued to sing to him softly.

Mavid lifted a piece of paper up from the desk, a low whistle escaping his lips as he looked at it.

Jareth reached out for it, "What is it?"

"Mail," was all Mavid said before handing it over.

Jareth brought the letter up and looked it over, his eyes darting down to the bottom first and he cursed when he saw who it was from. "Hell! Why is she writing to me?!"

"Take a look at it, it's a resume, not a letter." Mavid held up another piece of paper. "This one that came with it is a letter… of recommendation."

Jareth looked down at the letter already in his hands sent to him from Rally, saying that she had received word from his father that he was in need of her assistance and she would be happy to help him with the education of his new queen if he could respect her terms of service, primarily payment and allowing her to subject Sarah to her methods without his interference or opinions. "What the hell? What ever happened to my father telling me he would leave it up to me for now whether or not to seek her services?"

Mavid passed the second letter to him. "Read this one."

Jareth looked down at his father's block letters on the mostly white piece of parchment.

 _ **Son,**_

 _ **Last night after returning home to Red Hallow I was made aware by yet another rumor**_

 _ **that your new bride had actually struck you purposefully and the rumor (or at least,**_

 _ **I fully assume it is a rumor since she can still walk on her own) claims that all**_

 _ **she received in reprimand was a single slap to the face. These rumors will stop, you will find out who is spreading them!**_

 _ **I contacted Rally for you.**_

 _ **Invite her to your castle for the instruction of your wife immediately, or I will.**_

 _ **King Hamold of Goodwell.**_

Jareth scowled over the letter. "You call this a letter of recommendation?" he spat at Mavid. Little Jareth started to fuss on his knee from the lack of attention paid to him and Jareth absent-mindedly went back to bouncing him.

Mavid shrugged, "Very strong recommendation."

Little Jareth continued to wail so he picked up his son and got back up from the chair, humming softly as he moved about the room a little, pausing only to speak to Mavid further. "I'm not going to just let my father come in and walk all over my kingdom like this, or my marriage! Damn it to hell."

"Hell!" Little Jareth echoed, causing Mavid to burst out laughing and Jareth had to bite back yet another curse. He turned his son around in his arms and held him at arm's length facing him. He smiled at his son slightly despite his words when he spoke. "Just how long will it be before you stop turning my world upside down you precious thing?"

Little Jareth just smiled back and laughed a little, as though he found it all just endlessly amusing. With a sigh Jareth brought him back to sit against his hip. "I suppose I'll have to watch what I say around him now, I forgot that he's already repeating words."

Mavid simply smirked and looked back down at the letters in front of him. "I take it we will not be sending her an invitation to come out here and tutor Sarah then?"

"Not yet no, I don't care for what I hear of her tutoring methods. She may be the most accomplished instructor among the Fae, but I don't want to subject Sarah to someone so… unyielding. Did you know that when she was tutoring Gyle and Kissa's daughter on the basics of dining etiquette she would heat up the silverware so that if the poor girl chose to eat with the wrong utensil she would burn her hands? That crotchety old bag gets off on such sadism I just know it."

Mavid chuckled under his breath, "Pretty cleaver though, if you ignore the circumstances of course. Sarah does only have about a week to learn everything she will need though."

Jareth signed and pivoted around the room again, as much for himself as for his son. "I am aware. Hold off on that for now and see about contacting a few more possibilities, males if you must."

Mavid shrugged and pushed the letters aside for now. "If you insist."

Jareth went to the window and looked out over his labyrinth, holding his son up and smiling when Little Jareth simply took in the view rather than fussing or squirming at all, his blue eyes looking out over the goblin city and beyond. "This will all be yours one day," Jareth murmured, "Till then it will be up to me and your new mum to watch over it for you."

X

Sarah felt downcast to say the least as she followed Ishapell and Clora back towards her room through the halls, their shoes clicking on the stone as they all walked. After taking off their shoes they had continued to walk around the garden for another half hour before Ishapell had mentioned they needed to head back to avoid being late for supper. She insisted that Sarah wash up a little since she had been rummaging around in the plants. Sarah had only been doing so so it would look like she was interested in them and not in finding a way out. Trying to find the way out though had led to her simply searching for a wall. She had still seen none, like they didn't even exist!

"Clora smiled sweetly at Sarah as she opened her door for her. "Ishapell and I will need to wash up too before supper, do you want us to come back to escort you to the dining hall or did you want to meet us there?"

Sarah thought it over. "I guess I'll just meet you all there, I won't take long."

The two females nodded and Clora offered her a final smile before heading back down the hall to seek out their own washrooms.

Sarah went inside Jareth's room and slipped into the bathroom, washing her hands and wrists quickly. She then made her way through the room and over to the balcony, pushing back the giant glass doors and stepping out to look down upon the view offered from this point on the castle. She couldn't see the garden at all, so it was probably on a different side of the castle.

She looked out at the labyrinth, with so many walls to shape it, full of dead ends and false hopes. It was a wonderful and awful trap.

She though about what Jareth had said to her the other night in the garden, about walls and how not all of them are made of stone. That was true enough, even in what she could see of the labyrinth the walls seemed to be made up of anything really, stones, rocks, shrubs, statues, water runways, pipes… the list was endless.

She had suspected that maybe some of the plants in the garden were supposed to act as walls, like the thorn tree had to keep travelers off of Jareth's private path, and that was why she had poked through some of them, searching for more hidden paths. She wanted to try again since she had only been able to do so much with Clora and Ishapell there. She needed to leave the trail next time for a better look. Maybe she would skip supper, tell Jareth she wasn't feeling well and then while they were all eating she would sneak out to look.

She couldn't see it being that easy though. Besides, even if she did find anything she couldn't leave, not without Toby. With a final look out onto the vast labyrinth, she headed back inside and down to the dining hall. She would get her chance; after all, time was all she had down here in the Underground.

X

He was going to kill her! After all that had happened last night she was already disobeying him, damn her! He glared at his cousin as she continued to tell him about how Sarah had not only removed her own shoes in the garden, but encouraged both his cousins to do so as well despite that they knew it was improper. She had caught him in the hall on his way to the dining room and told him everything after he had sent Mavid on ahead with Little Jareth.

"Where is she now?" he snapped, his blood already simmering as several punishments already started racing through his mind.

"We left her in your room to wash up, your highness," she explained, bowing her head to him.

"Go on to supper, tell the rest not to wait for us," he barked at her, moving past her before she could bow her head and say 'Yes your majesty'. He never saw the slight smile that played around his cousin's lips as he stalked down the hall.

Jareth hurried down the halls to his room, intent on finding out just what the hell Sarah had been thinking. Was he going to have to nail her shoes to her feet before she kept them on?! Yes it had been only in the company of females while they were alone, but that was not the point. He didn't understand why this was such a big argument between them. She knew she wasn't supposed to remove her shoes unless in the privacy of their room and yet she had done it anyway, and encouraged his two cousins to do so as well!

He stopped short when up ahead of him Sarah rounded the corner, obviously on her way to the dining hall. She also stopped short when she saw him, her eyes widening when she saw his angry expression. For a moment it looked like she just might turn around and run from him. She stayed her ground though, showing she had at least a drop of sense in her head. If he would have had to chase her on top of everything else he would have been beyond livid. "Take off your shoe, Sarah." he snapped, his voice echoing slightly in the hall.

Her eyes bugged and she knew he knew what she had done. "W-what?"

His voice was cold and even as he stepped closer to her. "Take off your shoe and keep your foot off the ground, I want to see it."

Her eyebrows knitted in complete confusion but she complied, lifting up her skirts and Jareth watched as she slid her foot out of her shoe, letting it dangle in the air. Jareth knelt before her and took her ankle roughly in his hand, scowling when he saw that her white stockings were now practically black under her feet, proving what he had been told. "Stupid girl," he cussed as he roughly dropped Sarah's foot.

She stepped back from him then, fear on her face. "H-how did you know-

"Do you think I am stupid Sarah!? That I don't know what my own wife is up to even when she is not right in front of me? My kingdom has more eyes and ears in it than it does walls and they all report to me."

"Ishapell!" Sarah cursed, "Jareth I didn't mean any harm by it, I simply took them off because I wanted to keep exploring the garden and my feet were starting to hurt!"

"You are speaking half-truths Sarah and that is the same as lying," Jareth's eyes flashed with his anger. "I don't appreciate lies, you encouraged your serving ladies to take off their shoes as well."

"They were hurting too! It was just in the garden!"

"That is not the point and you know it, I told you before that it isn't allowed. You have no idea what is left behind in these halls any more than you do out in that garden, what if you stepped on something and got hurt? There are some things out there that are poisonous if you cut yourself on them." Gods forbid if she hurt herself, didn't she understand it was for her own protection?

Sarah actually had the decency to look sheepish about her foolishness and wrung her hands in front of her, refusing to meet Jareth's eyes now. "Am I in trouble?" she asked in a quiet voice that she no doubt hoped would get her by without punishment.

"Yes," Jareth confirmed and she tensed noticeably as if bracing herself for a slap. For the love of… he had only ever hit her once! And that was after she had hit him, yes he had maybe shoved her and manhandled her a bit, but that was different. "Go back to your room this instant and don't come out for the rest of the night."

Sarah's head shot up at that in surprise. "What?"

"You disobeyed me, now you will not have supper tonight," he clarified.

Sarah seemed stunned for a second, staring at him with an odd expression on her face. At last though she nodded her head and turned back around to head to their room. Jareth wondered if maybe he shouldn't walk her back and lock the door behind her after the odd look she had given him when he told her that. She hadn't really put up much of a fight about her punishment and that also irked at his better judgment.

 _You're being paranoid_ , he chastised himself, _if she is actually starting to mind you when you punish her than don't knock a good thing_. Jareth turned and headed back down the hall to the dining room at long last.

X

Sarah was trying not to either hurry or smile as she made her way down the hall and back towards the platform that led to the tower, she bi-passed it though and headed straight for the stairs that she knew now would lead her to the garden door. This was her chance to look around, the very one she was looking for and she would be a fool to waste it. Maybe Jareth had had a point about the shoes, she had seen enough broken glass on the floors alone from the goblins to give his words merit. She would keep them on, she could suffer through the pain in order to possibly find even a wall around the garden. If she could find the wall, after all, she could find the escape.

She would search and be back in her room before Jareth ever caught on that she had disobeyed him.

Sarah hurried along and reached the door to the garden, still undarkened by shadows. She opened it up easily and hurried out onto the path that was overgrown with wildlife. The garden honestly couldn't be very big, she had seen it through none of the windows she looked out of so far. She hurried along, stifling her scream when she spooked another pair of plant-birds out of their pose. She continued on quickly, her feet already stinging but she ignored them. She would only have so much time before the others were done eating. She was nothing if not an opportunist and this was like a sign from above. She had been disputing going to supper after all, and now she wasn't allowed there.

Sarah continued down the path, the sky already starting to darken above her. She hurried along till the path came to a turn rather than continuing straight ahead. She stopped there and took in her choices, if she kept to the path she wouldn't find anything new, but if she went straight here there was a lot of plants she would have to battle her way through for who knew how long. Sarah decided to chance it anyway, pushing her way into and through the hedge, only to wince when she heard the sound of tearing fabric as he dress caught. She would just have to deal with that later. Hopefully Jareth wouldn't notice it.

She misjudged just how much of a fight the large bush in front of her would put up to keep her from crashing through it, screaming in surprise when it practically jumped out of her way and she fell down onto the ground where it had just been a second before. She cursed again and pulled herself to her feet, looking down at her soiled dress in despair. A tear she could easily lie about, but being covered in dirt… Jareth would kill her. She would just have to make sure when she got back to dispose of the evidence was all. She would get this dress off her before Jareth saw it even if she had to rip it to shreds in the process.

Sarah re-gathered her bull-headed resolve and moved on, finding it much easier to go along now, the plants behind the shrub were badly overgrown but easy enough to get by, especially the ones that seemed capable of moving out of her way. It was slow going but she didn't fall down or rip her dress on anything else. Sarah came up against another shrub before long and wanting to go forward rather than taking several turns and never finding the way out, she found a small gap near the bottom and crawled through, the only thing harder to deal with than the corset being the huge skirt that she had to pull through after her. There was a great deal more tearing of the dress and she was sweating by the time she got herself all the way through, but she made it none the less.

Sarah looked around to see what she would have to push through now, expecting lots more plants to hinder her once more. Her heart sank when she saw she was sitting (not amongst hordes of plant-life) on one of the flat stones that created a trail against the ground. How had she gotten back on the marked trail!

Sarah looked up and practically screamed when she saw the door to the castle straight ahead of her. Hadn't she been walking away from it?! She hadn't turned at all and somehow had ended up right back where she had started. "What a horrible place this is!" she screeched. "It's not fair!"

This was just what she would expect from Jareth's awful labyrinth really, where nothing made sense and one could never find their way to anything. She wouldn't be beaten so easily! She had hardly even tried really. Sarah resiliently sprang to her feet and hurried further down the path, deciding that this time she would enter at a different spot and go a different way. Sarah came to a spot before long that seemed a little more promising, the plants were spaced out more and they all looked flimsy enough that she would be able to get through them a lot easier than the shrubs. Sarah stepped off the path into them, only to shriek again when one of the plants wrapped tightly around her ankle and she almost fell forward into the plants that reached up for her like hands waiting to catch her. Through miracles unseen she kept her balance and didn't dare move as her second ankle was seized and the other tall plants slid against her skirts and hips like they meant to grab her there too. They weren't tall enough though and could only move about fruitlessly as if waiting for their chance. Sarah shuddered to think what would have happened if she had fallen. She kept her hands high up at her chest after one taller plant made to try to wrap around her wrist.

What was she supposed to do!? If she moved she would trip but she couldn't stay here. "Stop it!" she shouted in anger at the plants, like that would convince them to back off.

"Don' fall forward," came a little voice from somewhere behind her on the path.

As much as she wanted to Sarah couldn't chance turning around to see who was speaking to her. "Help me," she implored whoever the owner of the voice was.

"Ya got yerself into a quite a sticky mess," the high voice chuckled, laughing at her, "You'll be alright though, yer hardly very far into the snare grass, just let yourself fall backwards onto the path."

Easier said than done. Sarah didn't want to fall back and end up cracking her head open on the concrete, and no matter how she fell she knew it would hurt. She looked down at the blades of grass wiggling around her. What choice did she have though? She would find out. "What happens if I fall forward?"

"The snare grass will cover ya up completely and hold ya there till long after you've suffocated, but this is still young grass so ya would possibly survive for another couple 'ours at least."

Sarah bulked at that sort of information. Why the hell would Jareth have something like this planted in his garden?! _Because he's a sadistic bastard_ , she reminded herself. Falling forward wasn't an option then. Sarah braced herself and twisted around as much as she could, making a lunge for the path as the grass tripped her up and grabbed for her as she fell. Sarah hit the ground hard on her elbows but bit through the pain as she grabbed the path stones and pulled herself out of the grass slowly, the blades hanging onto her like their lives depended on it. At long last she was able to pull herself completely free of their hold. She turned and watched the grass all stand up straight again and stop moving, innocent as could be.

Sarah looked around for her helper but saw no one. "Hello?" she asked, wondering who had been speaking to her just now.

"Ello."

Sarah looked down and at first thought her mind was playing tricks on her, seeing the same blue worm that she had encountered at the beginning of the labyrinth staring up at her. "Oh, hello!" she said, happy just to see an familiar and friendly face for the first time since returning to the Labyrinth. "Thanks, that was very helpful of you."

"Was hoping I would get to see ya again," the worm greeted her pleasantly, not moving at all from his spot next to her on the stones. "I saw ya out here earlier but ya was with some others."

Sarah couldn't help but feel a little surprised, still just marveling in seeing the worm again and so unrepentantly. "Yes, I was with two females, Jareth's cousins."

"Well I was hoping to get to ya when ya was alone. They didn't give me a chance earlier."

"When I was alone? What for?" Sarah asked, turning so she could see the worm more fully.

"I was told to come and get ya."

She felt utterly confused. "Come and get me? I don't understand what you mean."

"I was told by the Underground Women that ya was in need of help getting out of this labyrinth, funny thing since last I spoke to ya ya was trying to get in."

Sarah's eyes buldged and she swore for a minute she must have heard him wrong. "You know the way out?"

The worm nodded his head. "I know my way through the entire labyrinth inside and out, up and down. I have lived in it's walls me whole life, just like my father did. And his father did, and his father before that, and his cousin before that, and his cousin's aunt before that, and…

Sarah held her hand up to get him to stop, "Okay, I get it, I do. So you can get me out of the labyrinth and out of this garden?"

The worm nodded again. "Well of course I can, wouldn't be much help to ya if I couldn't now would I?"

Sarah fought against the smile threatening to split her head in half. She was going to get out of here after all! She found her smile dissipating, however when all his words sunk in. "Wait a minute, who are the Underground Women? Why do they want to help me?"

"Why they's the ones who helped the last queen escape to the Aboveground, they care for the children that are stolen from there, as well as the changelings from here. The old queen asked them to help her get back you and her son."

Karen!

Sarah fought her instincts to start jumping up and down and screaming with happiness. She was going to get away from Jareth! She would use the same path Karen had taken to get away from him and then she would be free of him forever! "Oh thank you so much!" she gasped, practically overcome with her relief. She was going home!

"Where is the babe?" the worm asked.

Sarah slowly looked back over her shoulder down the path. "He's in the castle."

"We'll have to have him too before we can go."

Her heart fell and landed in the pit of her stomach. "I won't be able to get him tonight," she admitted, thinking that chances were good he was seated on Jareth's lap at the table as they spoke. They were probably all finishing the meal as she sat on the path discussing her escape with the worm.

The worm shook his head back and forth. "That's a shame, we'll have to wait till you can get him out here alone, sometime when the Goblin King wont notice you're gone right away."

"I don't know when that will be," Sarah sighed. Even if she was able to find a time like that, Tallia would still be a hurdle, not to mention Clora and Ishapell who would follow her everywhere. She needed a plan.

"Tell you what, I'll go back and speak with the Underground Women, see if they can't help you out a little more. Would you be able to meet me back here tomorrow night?"

Sarah thought about it. Tomorrow she would be followed by Clora and Ishapell till supper, and after which Jareth usually spent time with her. "I think I might be able to after supper…"

"I'll wait for you here then. For now though you best be getting back inside, who knows how long before they find you are out here."

Sarah hurried to her feet. "They can't! I'd be in worlds of trouble." She gave the worm one last nod of deep gratitude before turning and hurrying back down the path towards the castle. "Thank you so much!"

X

Jareth kissed Toby goodnight before placing the already sleeping babe down in his crib, he had been tuckered out and had fallen asleep only halfway through supper. Between that and Sarah missing Jareth hadn't felt like dragging out the meal, eating with some haste before getting up and excusing himself to go put his son to bed.

Toby slept soundly against his pillow, his little chest rising and falling in a steady rhythm. Jareth was aware of the nurse maid standing somewhere behind him. "Tomorrow we are starting him on solids," Jareth informed her, not bother to glance back.

"Yes your majesty," she agreed tonelessly.

Jareth moved past her and out into the hall, stopping short when he was almost run into by a smaller form. A half second later he realized that he had just almost been run into by Sarah, who was running down the hall towards their room?!

She stopped in her tracks and fear instantly washed over her face along with surprise, she obviously hadn't expected to see him any more than he had expected to see her.

"Sarah?" he asked, wondering if his eyes were maybe deceiving him. He had told her she was to stay in their room for the rest of the night. Why was she in the hall? Jareth looked at her more closely. Why was she covered in dirt?

His fists were trembling before he even knew he was angry. Sarah paled in front of him like all her blood had just left her body and she took a timid step away from him. Jareth could hardly see straight through his anger and his blood pounded in his head, giving him an instant and monstrous headache that did nothing but drive on his anger as he tried to get his head wrapped around what he was seeing.

He had told her she was not allowed to have supper and that she was to go back to their room and stay there for the rest of the night as punishment for disobeying one of his orders. Yet now here she was, standing in the hall on her way to their room with a look of complete guilt and terror on her face and dirt all over her torn up dress. There was more dirt on her hands and arms, a smudge of it on her cheek and her hands and elbows looked red and a little scraped up.

Jareth felt a tremor of fury run down his spine and then suddenly he wasn't shaking anymore.

In fact, he felt very calm… dangerously calm as he surveyed Sarah, who now had started to tremble before him in her fright. "Oh Sarah," he tsked in mocking pity for her, his voice cold enough to almost hide the malevolence he was feeling towards her, "When will you ever learn?"

He reached out and grabbed her arm with amazing speed, clamping down on it with almost all his strength and Sarah screamed at the pain she felt as he dragged her down the hall with him, opening up the door to his room and flinging her inside ahead of him before slamming the door closed and locking it behind them.


	11. Chapter 11

_Beta is The Art of Suicide, whom is owed so much thanks._

 _He had told her she was not allowed to have supper and that she was to go back to their room and stay there for the rest of the night as punishment for disobeying one of his orders. Yet now here she was, standing in the hall on her way to their room with a look of complete guilt and terror on her face and dirt all over her torn up dress. There was more dirt on her hands and arms, a smudge of it on her cheek and her hands and elbows looked red and a little scraped up._

 _Jareth felt a tremor of fury run down his spine and then suddenly he wasn't shaking anymore._

 _In fact, he felt very calm… dangerously calm as he surveyed Sarah, who now had started to tremble before him in her fright. "Oh, Sarah," he tsked in mocking pity for her, his voice cold enough to almost hide the malevolence he was feeling towards her, "When will you ever learn?"_

 _He reached out and grabbed her arm with amazing speed, clamping down on it with almost all his strength and Sarah screamed at the pain she felt as he dragged her down the hall with him, opening the door to his room and flinging her inside ahead of him before slamming it closed and locking it behind them._

X

Sarah stumbled away from him, clutching her arm to herself pitifully and watching him with wide scared eyes. _She should be scared_ , he thought bitterly to himself. Jareth glared at her as he shrugged off his jacket, allowing himself more movement. The stiff leather flopped to the ground behind him, hitting the stone floor with a _smack_. "You are in a lot of trouble now, precious," he informed her in his same utterly calm tone as he reached down and tugged his riding crop out from inside of his knee-high boot.

Sarah's eyes grew impossibly wider with dread when she saw the instrument. She took another step back from him, fearful shivers causing her to visibly shake.

"Sarah," Jareth said, raising his voice a little to get her attention back on him and off the crop, "Listen to what I am about to say."

Her wide eyes darted up to his.

"I am going to give you a chance to explain yourself. If you tell me the truth and do as I say I will show you leniency. Do you understand?"

Sarah nodded her head without hesitation, "Y-yes," she squeaked.

"You know why you are in trouble, don't you?"

Again, Sarah nodded her head. "I disobeyed you."

"Good. And why was that, Sarah?" he sneered, tightening his hold on the crop. "Did you not understand when I told you to come here and stay here for the rest of the night?"

Sarah looked nervously at the crop before shaking her head. "I- I understood, Jareth."

"I don't need to ask where you were. It's obvious you were out in the garden. I told you that you would only be allowed out there if you could obey me. You have purposefully disobeyed me twice since then. Perhaps I should take the garden away from you till you can learn to mind me and my rules."

He was slightly surprised when she suddenly looked even more terrified than she had out in the hall and she instantly moved closer to him, pausing just out of his reach when her eyes fell back on the riding crop in his hand, "Jareth, please no! I'll be good, I promise," she insisted, her voice sounding on the verge of tears. "I love it out there, please don't take it away!"

"And why is that, Sarah? Do you love it because you think you can just ignore my rules when you are out there, that you can ignore _me_? I assure you, you cannot. I told you very clearly that you were to stay in our room. The only reason I didn't lock you in here was because I didn't think you would be foolish enough to disobey me like this. I see now just how wrong I was. Such a stupid girl! To actually disregard my warning…"

"Jareth, it's not like that I swear," Sarah pleaded, "I was just going to go out for a moment I never intended for you to find out!" she bit her lip, realizing too late just how foolish she was.

Jareth couldn't help but laugh bitterly at her. "I bet you didn't." He pointed at her with the crop, "Why are you covered in dirt? Taking a walk is one thing, but you look like you tried to dig a tunnel or something."

She looked down at herself in embarrassment. "I fell," she said in a rather quiet voice.

"Yes, it looks like you did have a rather nasty tumble. This time I wish for you to fall to your knees before me." He pointed to the floor right in front of his feet with the crop. Sarah simply stared in dismay, her eyes pleading with him that he not make her do so. "If I must wait another minute you will be sorrier than you have ever been in your life, precious," he warned her, his tone leaving no room for doubt.

Sarah dejectedly knelt on the floor before him, her eyes trained hard on a minuscule crack in the masonry. "Tell me you're sorry," Jareth ordered.

"I'm sorry," she answered in a toneless voice.

"You can do better than that, surely," Jareth chuckled humorlessly, "What are you sorry for?"

At her hesitation, he snapped the business end of the crop against the leather of his boot, resulting in a sharp crack that made Sarah jump just about out of her skin. "I'm sorry that I disobeyed you again."

"You're not going to disobey me again are you, precious," he drawled, his tone daring her to disagree. Sarah shook her head, still mapping out the nearly imperceptible flaws in the stonework with studious determination. She didn't have to meet his eyes to know the cold, calm malice that was no doubt glinting in them as he stared down at her intensely.

"Good. Now lean forward into a bow and put your arse up in the air," Jareth instructed.

She was trembling all over, but she didn't dare disobey. She slowly did as she was told, shifting her weight to her arms as she leaned forward. Her already scraped hands and elbows provided her with a precarious balance. Jareth watched with a certain level of perverted amusement as her arse rose high into the air, like some sort of bitch in heat waiting to be taken from behind. Gods, she was a tempting sight. But first things first.

Jareth moved around to stand behind her, watching another terrified shiver run over her before he reached down and undid the laces on the back of her dress quickly. He had her rise back up long enough for him to slip it up off of her and toss it aside. It was ruined now anyway. Sarah stayed in her position like she was waiting for him to undo her corset as well. Jareth loosened it only so she wouldn't pass out but left it on her so she would be guaranteed no comfort, pushing down roughly on the back of her neck so she was forced to return to her submissive position.

Jareth took no pleasure in hurting her. He truly didn't. However, he couldn't help but find some satisfaction in seeing her in such a pose and stirred slightly in his leggings as he swung the crop down hard on her rear. Only her underwear protected her skin from being marked by the blow.

Sarah screamed and instantly moved to shield herself, twisting to the side and putting her hand up defensively in front of her. "You said you would be lenient!" she caterwauled.

"And I am. Ten strikes for disobeying me and your garden privileges removed for the time being. That is very lenient compared to what I will do if you continue to fight me. Now get back on hands and knees like a good girl so we may both get this over with."

Fat tears slid down her cheeks and she just continued to stare up at him, obviously fighting to say something. It seemed her voice had left her.

"Continuing to defy me, little one?" he asked cynically, bringing the crop down on her outstretched hand. She shrieked like a banshee and cradled it against her chest, but still did not move back into position.

Her voice shook as she spoke. "If I let you give me thirty strikes will you let me go out into the garden?"

Jareth was surprised, to say the least. "There is no room for negotiations here, Sarah. I already made a deal with you before that you could go into the garden whenever you wanted if you could behave. You cannot make a counter offer just because you failed to hold up your side of the bargain. Now get back on your knees."

"Forty strikes!" she tried again, desperation in her voice.

Something was off here. She had felt the sting of his crop once, and yet she preferred that over losing her outdoor rights. There had to be a reason other than just that she liked it outside. Tomorrow he would have the garden searched thoroughly for whatever she was playing at. There was no way she could have found the way out. That was impossible. It had to be something else.

"If I were to give you forty whacks with this your skin would be hanging off you in strips by the time I was done. Now stop being brainless and get back on your hands and knees. I will strike you only ten times as promised. I've already administered the first one."

Tears continued to slide down her cheeks as she looked at him with those pleading eyes like this was his fault. She was the one who so willfully disobeyed him. She knew if she got caught she would be punished for it, but that hadn't mattered to her. She should have been prepared to accept the consequences of her actions. Very slowly, Sarah turned back over onto her hands and knees and shifted about on the floor a little till she was in the position he'd told her to get into in the first place.

Good. She had finally realized there was nothing else she could do. Jareth moved up closer and brought his arm back, the crop staying below waist level so that it would not hurt so much when he did strike her with it, but it would sting nonetheless. "Two," he counted as he brought the crop down on her backside.

X

Sarah couldn't see past her tears as she knelt on the floor, but right now seeing wasn't the primary sense at the forefront of her mind. Her hands and knees stung against the stone concrete of the floor. That pain was insignificant compared to the crop that cut through the air and slapped hard against her skin through her panties.

Somewhere behind her she was dimly aware of Jareth's voice counting just before each swing of the crop. It bit into her skin each time and she felt hot all over, a fine sweat covering her brow and she could only guess at how red and hot her backside would be from the blood flow there. Every time the crop beat down white hot pain shot up her back and through her limbs and she cried out.

She tried her best to focus on something, anything else. Focusing on the sound of Jareth's voice as he counted didn't make her forget the pain, but it did help to remind her that it was only temporary.

"Seven…"

 _Crack_

"Eight…"

 _Crack_

"Nine…"

 _Crack_

Sarah screamed out at the pain, her tears dampening the ground in front of her. She just wanted it to be over. She almost felt thankful that he refused to allow her to trade her garden privileges for more. Almost.

"Ten," Jareth sighed before bringing the crop down on her in a final strike.

The last one didn't hurt nearly as much as those preceding it, the pain dulled drastically by her relief that it was the last one. She made to get out of her humiliating position, only to stop when she found that it hurt to do so. Her joints were stiff and her skin was still sore and hot in the places she had been struck.

She had never been so much as spanked before, her father would have never…

Sarah found herself unable to stop crying. She felt more humiliated than she ever had in her entire life. Between the pain, the humiliation, and the knowledge that she had just possibly lost her one chance for escape she just couldn't stop the tears or even convince them to slow down. She flinched when Jareth's hand brushed over her sore ass. Her skin was extremely tender there, but he was extremely gentle as his palm followed the curve of her cheek.

His voice was deep and gentle when he spoke. "There are some welts, but I was careful not to break the skin. You'll be completely healed within the next day or so. In the meantime, I trust this will help to curb that insolent rebellious streak you possess."

Sarah hated him. She needed to get out of here, no matter if it resulted in him doing this to her every night till she found her escape. Let him take away her garden privileges. She knew the way to the garden now. He couldn't stop her. First chance she got she would sneak away into the garden tomorrow night and try to find the worm again. She had to.

"It's not as though I enjoy having to punish you, Sarah," he continued as his hand slid from her ass up to the small of her back, the cool leather of his glove an unwelcome relief against her skin. "Come now, I'll help you get up."

"I don't want your help!" she snarled at him bitterly.

Jareth paused behind her for a moment. "Very well then. When you are ready you may climb into bed yourself."

He moved past her, not even glancing at her as he went over and locked the door to her own bedroom against her. She glared up at him from her prone position on the floor but he didn't even see it, ignoring her presence as he started to strip off the rest of his clothes. He wasn't even going to allow her to sleep in her own room tonight. She would be forced to either share his bed or sleep on the floor.

Sarah forced herself to get up from the floor, feeling achy and tired as she slowly made her way over to the bed. She didn't want to share his bed with him tonight, but she would be damned before she slept on the floor like a dog. Jareth finally looked over at her when she got closer to the bed and it wasn't an entirely friendly look. Sarah stopped in her tracks.

"What are you doing?" Jareth demanded, eyeing her up and down as she stood there confused.

She glared back at him, feeling too tired and sore to care if he got mad at her again. "Getting into bed."

Jareth shook his head. "You are covered with dirt and sweat. You will bathe first if you expect to sleep in my bed tonight."

"You are the one that locked me out of my room," Sarah insisted, even though a bath did sound good.

"Go and clean yourself up first if you expect to sleep in my bed tonight," Jareth repeated, his tone sharper.

Despite that it might make him angry with her again, she let out a frustrated growl and turned around to march into the bathroom. He was impossible! She quickly got the tub ready, keeping the water just slightly warm since her skin still felt hot all on its own. She stripped off her hose, very slowly and carefully peel her panties from her and wincing when it still stung her skin. She turned around so she could see herself in the mirror. The skin on her ass was bright red, with even redder welts streaking across it in mean looking lines.

She would be lucky if she would be able to sit down at all tomorrow.

Sarah reached back and with a lot of shuffling and rummaging around, she was able to get the corset unstrung as well. It would have been impossible if Jareth had not been thoughtful enough to loosen the ties earlier so it did not squeeze the life out of her. It was probably the better part of half an hour and immeasurable effort on her part, but she was able to manage removing it on her own. She could have possibly just gone out and asked Jareth to help her and it would have been off in two seconds, but she didn't want to ask that rat for anything after what he had done to her.

Sarah threw the corset roughly to the side and climbed down gingerly into the bathwater. It felt cool and good against her skin and soothed her poor rump in ways that left her sighing in contentment as she perched on her knees in the water so she could keep from having to sit down.

She startled when the door opened and Jareth came into the room, wearing a floor-length maroon robe that was lined with soft black fur on both the cuffs and the lapels. If he ever wondered where the purple robe she had tossed out the window went, he hadn't asked her. Nor had he inquired about the missing flowers that left behind an ever-present yet faint smell of lilacs. Sarah didn't see any point in prompting him to do so. She fought to hide her scowl at seeing him, turning away and sinking down lower into the bathwater although he would be sure to see everything.

"What is taking you so long?" Jareth inquired impatiently.

She refused to look at him, keeping her chin high and her back strong as she simply shrugged. "I had to get that blasted corset off me. I only just now got in here."

"If you would have asked I would have removed it for you."

"I didn't want your help," Sarah shrugged casually, still not looking back at him.

There was a loaded silence and then she heard Jareth let out a long sigh somewhere behind her. "So, it's back to square one, is it? Sarah, you are exhausting me with your bull-headedness. I explained to you just last night about how when you are bad you are chastised for it and then it is over. I do not carry feelings of anger or disappointment against you afterward. You need to stop holding these petty grudges against me. Do you think that growing up I went unpunished whenever I acted out against my superiors? I was punished every time and I learned my lesson from it. I am bound to rules just as you are, Sarah. I cannot go about kicking off my shoes and saying and doing whatever I wish, despite what you may think. You need to learn that there are consequences in life. Do you understand?"

She hated him. She hated this prison. She wanted to leave with every bone in her body. She longed to tell him just what she thought of his "consequences" but thought better of it and shut her mouth. Her one chance right now of ever being able to leave would be to meet with the worm tomorrow night in the garden and learn what she must do in order to make her dream a reality. She needed Jareth to agree to allow her to go outside tomorrow. He would never do that if he thought she would continue to "defy" him.

She hated it, but she forced herself to nod her head. "I understand, Jareth." _And you're going to understand that you can't always have what you want just because you're a king_.

His voice was skeptical, almost mocking from behind her. "Do you?"

She turned around to face him, using her acting talents to make herself seem tired and plaintive… not that it was a stretch to feel tired. Jareth's brows were still drawn and his face stern as he met her stare with one of inpatient edginess. He had been pushed too far tonight and even if she was still feeling rebellious, now would not be the time to peak his anger further. She glanced down to the floor in a play of guilty submission and nodded her head again before letting a slow and long sigh escape her. "Jareth… I'm s-sorry," she said, making it sound as though it was difficult for her to say. If she just turned around and started being pleasant to him right away he would be sure to see right through her.

If he thought that maybe she truly had learned whatever twisted lesson he was trying to teach her, her chances would be far better of convincing him to not take away her garden privileges before tomorrow night.

One of his brows lifted in question and his eyes were intense on her like he was trying to understand what she had just said. As if it were in a different language. Sarah fought hard with herself to continue to look sincere as she once again met his gaze. When his face slowly closed back up into a scowl her heart sank too and she wondered if maybe she had gone too far too fast and now he didn't believe her.

"If you're truly sorry than I expect you will start acting like it and mind me when I tell you not to do something."

 _Son of a-_ "I will," she agreed meekly.

There was another long pause in which Jareth just stood there, continuing to study her as if weighing her words. She finally turned back around and continued to stare at the water in front of her, waiting for him to either say something else or leave. Sarah startled but forced herself to relax again as much as possible when Jareth leaned over and placed his hands on the rim of the tub on either side of her shoulders, leaning his weight on the sides as he dipped down to place a kiss on the very crown of her head, his lips lingering against her hair for a long moment before he slowly pulled back from her.

Without a single word, he took the soap and knelt next to the tub beside her, washing her back clean with much the same loving attention that a father would bestow upon a child. His hands were gentle yet firm against her skin and he seemed very relaxed as he took care to scrub all the dirt from her skin, using feather touches when he got to the scraped skin of her hands and elbows.

The whole time, Sarah tried to hide her smile of triumph at how easy it had been. By this time tomorrow night, she would have a plan of escape and would never look back.

X

"The Path Master has made contact with your stepdaughter," Madunet informed Carrie, using the wall-sized mirror the Underground Women possessed, "We have given him instructions to relay to her tomorrow night so that she may escape with your son and find her way here as safely as possible."

Hardly any of Carrie's face could be seen, but it took up the whole mirror. Madunet and the other Underground Women could still tell though when the woman smiled in utter delight and relief.

"Oh, thank you! Thank you, God!" she gasped through the mirrors. Her eyes came back into view and she looked out at the Underground Women. "Thank you so much! I owe you everything."

Madunet nodded and shifted her heavy old body around, moving over so her sister Tenudam could move forward. "We have instructed him to bring her here in two nights' time. I hope you remember your deal to us in exchange for our further help of you. You best get yourself a proper mirror for their safe travel."

Carrie nodded her head, still enthused by the wonderful news. "Of course, thank you again so much."

The image in the mirror shifted and disappeared, replaced by the reflections of the ten or so Women of the Underground. Each of them was prehistoric with deep wrinkles, hanging skin, and beady black eyes. Some were outright deformed in their ancientness. They were known to be as harsh in spirit as in appearance to all but children, who they were naturally caring towards.

Madunet turned from the reflection back to the others, who were all standing in anticipation behind her. The old hag could barely keep her features from twisting into a gruesome smile. "Patience, sisters," she told them in her heavenly lyrical voice, "We will soon have what we have been waiting for."

All the old crones twittered about and smiled in satisfaction. You never wanted to cross a member of the Underground Women, vengeful creatures that they were.

They all carried the memory and the loss that followed Carrie's escape with heavy hearts and hate-filled minds. She had come to the Crying Caves where they raised both their stolen human babes and their own changeling children seeking their portals to the Aboveground after receiving a particularly nasty punishment for her offenses against the Goblin King. She had begged and pleaded with them to allow her passage, claiming that Jareth would never know and that she would never forget what she owed them.

Underground Women were notorious for their ability to seek out and find children, and although it had been unbeknownst to Carrie, they could plainly tell that she was with child the moment she stepped into the caves as if she had been carrying a flag announcing it. Having a desperately soft spot for children, they had agreed to help her. They decided amongst themselves that if they helped her to the Aboveground the child would be safe to grow and reach birth and they would have the Queen of the Goblins as a way to the Aboveground since it was complicated and dangerous to journey between the worlds uninvited. They meant to one day journey to the Aboveground and take her own son as payment for the help they had given her and leave behind a changeling, but that had all changed.

Jareth's attendant Mavid had tracked her down to the caves by the time they had gotten her through to the Aboveground. He went back and told the Goblin King of their betrayal unto him, as well as that they had sensed that Carrie was pregnant when she left. He had been beyond livid at the news that his now pregnant wife was now out of his reach.

He had sworn up and down that from that day on he would not add to their collection of human children, bringing no more babes away to the labyrinth.

Two nights later the Underground Women had awoken to the screams of anguish of their changeling children, finding that their nursery rooms had been barricaded against them. When they had finally made their way in they had found the nursery in shambles, everything ruined and unsalvageable. Worse than all of that had been the sight of all their changelings, viciously murdered and left to die in their blood.

They had no proof it was Jareth's doing, but they also had no doubt.

He had made good on his word to not deliver unto them any more children too. He whisked away no children to his labyrinth until his son had been wished away. Now the babe they had planned to take was in the labyrinth, so close and yet so far. It was perfect.

They originally planned to refuse Carrie any further help but had then decided that by helping her it would be the best way to seek revenge on both Jareth and his disgraced former queen.

They pleaded with Carrie's old friend the Path Master in Carrie's stead to go and save her children from their terrible plight. He had, of course, agreed as he had been friends with Carrie for so many years when she ruled as queen. He would guide Sarah out of the labyrinth and then tell her how to reach the Crying Caves, thinking that the girl would find freedom there.

The Underground Women knew different though. Once she arrived in the Crying Caves they would send their changeling children across the portals to Carrie, assuring their safe delivery into the Aboveground. As soon as the changelings were safe they would kill the girl, being as she was no child but an adult now. They would keep the Goblin Prince for themselves to use against Jareth, forcing him to bring them more and more children if he wanted his one and only heir kept safe. As a rule, they would never ever harm children, but desperate times…

Both the Goblin King and Carrie would know then the pain they felt at the loss of their changelings, a pain brought on solely by the two of them and their wickedness towards each other.

It was absolutely the perfect revenge.

X

Sarah felt good. _Really good_. But something felt… funny. She wasn't sure why or what it was, but she was very vaguely aware of a tingling sensation that warmed her entire body and made her feel hot between her legs. She felt like she was drifting on currents as she slowly woke up, not yet having the strength to open her eyes as she tried to focus more on the pleasurable feeling she was having. Something was between her legs and she could tell that they were spread indecently. Jareth was between her legs… he was causing the feeling.

Sarah forced her eyes open a crack as soft wet sounds filtered through her ears, like kissing sounds. She felt Jareth's hands tighten on her inner thighs and couldn't repress her shudder as a pleasurable thrill shot up her spine. She lifted her head slightly and jumped at seeing Jareth busying himself between her thighs, his lips sucking and licking at her there. It was so odd, but it did feel good. Sarah let her head fall back onto the pillows, not quite sure what to do since nothing like this had ever been done to her before. She remembered when Jareth had made her use her mouth on him in something of a similar fashion. Somehow, she didn't think that slamming into his throat and making him drink down her release was the response she would get to opt for like he had.

Jareth lifted his head from her and pegged her with a lazy smile. "Good morning, Precious."

She wished he wouldn't call her that. "Ah, morning."

She wasn't sure what she was supposed to do, or say in response to that. After a pause of him doing nothing but continuing to stare at her from between her legs, Sarah decided to get up, moving to pull out from under him. His hands clamped down on her thighs instantly and she watched as his intense eyes held her gaze, hypnotizing her like a snake so she could neither move nor look away as he lowered his head back down to her. Sarah gasped at the intensified feeling as she watched his tongue reach out to her and slowly run up her center.

Jareth grinned at her reaction before doing it again, slowly and deliberately moving his tongue over her before moving in so his lips were right against her, sucking at her most sensitive area till the tiniest moan escaped her.

This felt so much better than anything else he had done to her so far. There was no pain or discomfort whatsoever and only a tingly pleasure that spread through her whole body. All she had to do- so far- was lay there and enjoy it. She knew she needed to get up and away from him, but truthfully, she really liked what he was doing. Besides, she needed him to think she was trustworthy again so she could go see the worm later tonight without risk of another beating.

Sarah laid back and another chill shot through her when she looked up at their imagery in the mirror above. Jareth was sprawled out on his stomach, utterly relaxed and totally enthralled with her as he continued to bestow his attentions on her. She could see down much lower on the bed that every couple seconds his hips would surge slowly forward against the sheets, shadow thrusting in time with his tongue's licks. It was strangely arousing to see his high buttocks clench every time he moved forward and a part of her could practically feel him doing so inside of her in long painfully slow thrusts like he had done with her before in the dining room.

The feeling between her legs was growing more intense and she could feel a familiar pressure building up. She wasn't so dense to not know what was about to happen. Like most girls her age, she had touched herself before. This was a lot like that… but much better. Sarah felt Jareth lean back slightly from her, the sensations of his tongue and lips becoming less concentrated and she was afraid she may lose the orgasm that was coming at her. She reached down before she could even think not to and gripped his long strands of hair in her hands, stopping him from pulling away anymore and lightly pushing down on his head to communicate to him what she wanted.

With a grin he obliged her, attacking her sensitive and swollen flesh once more with vigor till she let go of him and fell back once more against the bed. Her lower body tensed up and a second later the orgasm washed through her in a wave. Jareth entered her with his fingers as the pleasure caused her to throb and even she could feel herself clench down on his fingers in steady pulses. The warmth spread throughout her entire body, making her sweat slightly and she cried out as her hips bucked against the mattress.

Jareth pulled away from her then, his darkened eyes intense on her as he crawled up the length of her body. He got to his knees and reached out for her hips, pulling and pushing at them till it was clear he wanted her to move. Sarah tried scooting over to her left but that wasn't what he wanted. His voice was deep and hardly a whisper, "Turn over, Sarah."

Sarah stiffened slightly. He wanted her to turn over like she had last night?! Was she in trouble again?

Sarah remembered right after that her friend Mandy had told her about this position during sex and that it could be just amazing for both those involved. She had called it the "doggy position", a name that had made Sarah crack up at the time.

Jareth's insistent hands gripped her hips and he turned her over halfway himself. By then she had caught on and, lost to what else she should do at this point, turned around the rest of the way onto her hands and knees. Jareth placed one of his hands on the top of her buttocks to position himself but she winced and pulled away as pain shot up her spine from the light contact.

What was she thinking?! He had taken a crop to her just last night and here she was only hours later bending over for him once again. At her wince, Jareth paused in his actions, as if waiting for her to give him the go-ahead to continue.

She pulled away slowly, almost apologetically and turned back onto her side on the bed so she could turn back to him.

He let out a sigh at the look she gave him but didn't seem angry or impatient as he leaned back to sit on his ankles. "You're too sore for this, aren't you?"

She simply nodded her head, wondering if he might let her off the hook or if maybe he would think up some other sexual act for her to perform on him.

Jareth let out another sigh and got up from the bed, walking around the room a little bit before turning and heading towards the washroom.

"Where are you going?" Sarah found herself asking.

Jareth turned back to her, pausing in the doorway. "I need to wash up… did you wish to join me?"

She didn't see any reason to. If she did go he would probably just go after her again or at least grope her. She shook her head. "I just washed last night."

He stayed in the doorway for a second more before turning and disappearing through the door.

Now that she was finally alone Sarah allowed herself to frown and stuck her tongue out at the door where he had just been standing. She was going to have to work hard to be pleasant to him. She thought about last night. She had been told to stay in the room in the first place because he knew that she had taken off her shoes again. Ishapell had told on her obviously. She hated that female with a passion. She would have to be around her again today. She was beyond tempted to slap her when she did see her, but no doubt she would just run to Jareth again and get Sarah in more trouble. She wouldn't be sad if she never again saw that female.

Sarah eased her way out of bed, wincing when moving too quickly or flexing her buttock muscles caused her pain. She never wanted to see that crop ever again. She would have to be much sneakier if she was to avoid it in the future. She was careful to keep off her backside as she slid from the bed. She wouldn't be able to sit down at all today, that was for sure.

Sarah heard water running in the bathroom and assumed that Jareth would be busy for a while. She went over and tried her door but it was still locked against her. Bastard could have at least let her get to her own room before he went to wash up.

She looked around his room, figuring there must be something she could wear till he let her into her own room again. She went over to the white marble dresser sitting in the corner of the room. It was magnificent but seemed too small to house any wardrobe of his. She reached out and opened the double doors, thinking for a moment there was a mistake when the only thing it held inside was a single outfit.

Hanging inside was a spring green silky shirt with a leather vest-clad over it that was so dark green in color that it was almost black. It looked almost more like reptile skin than leather and there were matching pants made from the same material as the vest that looked like they would no doubt be tight on Jareth. There was also a pair of ankle-high black boots and on a little shelf sat matching gloves, dress socks, and under things which she found odd since she had certainly never been aware of him ever wearing any underthings before.

She closed the doors but then thought better of it. She could always just put on the green shirt. Except when she opened the wardrobe up to grab it she felt stunned again when she saw a completely different outfit made up of a sleeveless but well-cut collared white button-down shirt, a wide black belt that no doubt would cover most of the wearer's waist, black leggings, and black knee-highs. On the shelf next to that was the usual stack of gloves, under things, and socks.

She closed and opened the door three more times and found a different outfit every single time. Magic could truly be amazing and she fought against a delighted squeal at the use of it. The last outfit she had landed on was a simple white poet's shirt with tight brown trousers and darker thigh-high boots that laced up the front. She pulled out the shirt for herself since she wasn't even sure she would be able to fit into Jareth's pants- the man was very thin- and pulled it on over her head, pleased when she found that it was long enough to brush against her upper thighs but it was just barely short of see-through. Sarah could smell Jareth's scent all over it. Faint, but there. Still, it was better than nothing.

She made her way over to the balcony then, sighing when she found those doors locked too so she simply stared out at the view she was allowed from here of the very borders of the labyrinth and the sky above. For some reason, there were always clouds in the sky, in every shade of red, orange and grey. The yellow sun seemed to be caught in-between them… odd as it was for the sun to be as close as the clouds. But then, nothing was as it should be in this place.

She looked at the far borders of the labyrinth, wondering just where she would need to go to reach the Underground Women. They were her only chance and she would find a way to them.

Even if it killed her.

"What are you doing?"

She jumped slightly and turned to see Jareth standing just behind her. She hadn't even heard him come out of the bathroom. He was nude save for his amulet and a towel that rode low on his hips, and Sarah could see little droplets of water still clinging to the strands of his wet hair. Sarah could admit that she liked his haircut enough, but when it was wet it always looked so different. Save for one or two strands that never seemed to go down, all his hair stayed flat against his head till it dried and it made him look like he had grown his blonde hair out to beneath his shoulder blades rather than how it actually was.

"I was just looking at the sky," she shrugged honestly.

His mismatched eyes traveled down over her and she realized that he must have meant what was she doing in his shirt. She had forgotten! Sarah quickly grabbed the hem, intending to give it back to him, but Jareth's hand shot out to grip her arms, stopping her. Sarah looked up to his eyes, wondering if she was in trouble. It wasn't like he had given her any choice. He didn't look mad though as he took her in.

He stepped back from her with an odd little smirk on his lips as he took her in. "I like the way my shirt looks on you, and I like the fact that it's mine." His eyes blatantly raked over her and he reached out as if to touch her, only to stop when there was a knock on the door between his room and Sarah's. A clear sign that his cousins were in Sarah's room waiting for her.

Jareth let out a wistful sigh. "One moment," he called out, never taking his eyes from Sarah as his outstretched hand slowly flipped over so his palm was up. "I suppose it is time for me to take back my shirt… such a pity."

Sarah slipped the shirt back from over her head and handed it to Jareth before turning and heading towards the door to her room. She thought about asking him if she was allowed outside but figured it would be too soon to try asking and that she would see him tonight at supper. She would ask him then.

She turned back to see he had the shirt on and he was already sliding the pants around his waist, the towel discarded next to him. "Jareth, my door is still locked," she reminded him.

He waved his arm like he was hardly paying attention, going back to work on his own dressing. Sarah heard the lock click behind her though and made her way back into her own room.

Clora was right there next to her in an instant, wide-eyed and tight-dressed as she handed Sarah her undergarments. "What happened to you, Sarah? You never came down to supper and I was so worried about you."

Sarah looked over at Ishapell, who wasn't even paying her any attention as she aired out the dress that Sarah was to be dressed in. How she hated her, and even though the female wasn't looking Sarah still gave her a death glare to illustrate it. "I'll tell you later, Clora."

She took her underthings from Clora and very carefully put on her underpants. Clora, of course, noticed then. "What's wrong?" she looked behind Sarah and gasped at the sight of her buttocks, her hand flying over her mouth. "Oh, my goodness, Sarah… your arse!"

She blushed at her own outburst before Ishapell could even get her head turned all the way to glare at her cousin. "Forgive my rude language and outburst, but what happened to you!?"

Sarah let out a sigh and turned to her friend. "I promise I will tell you later," she said, casting another glare at Ishapell. This time the female saw it and although she looked slightly taken aback, she turned away and pursed her lips as she busied herself once more with the dress.

Clora took the hint and helped Sarah with her garters and hose. "Well… we'll just have to skip playing musical chairs today," the female joked, trying to lift the mood but ultimately failing.


	12. Chapter 12

Beta for this chapter is the lovely The Art of Suicide

"Have the goblins go out into the garden today. Make sure they check every square inch of it."

Mavid looked over to Jareth as they walked towards the sand room. "Are they looking for anything in particular?"

Jareth shook his head, "I'm not sure exactly, but Sarah wants to go out into the garden very badly for some reason. If there is anything or anyone out there that shouldn't be they will find it. They always do. You know how they are. They will pick up anything lying out and about if allowed."

"Do you suppose she found the way out?" Mavid asked, opening the door for Jareth.

Jareth shook his head as he walked inside the room. "I don't believe so, but I do want to know what she _did_ find. Last night she asked me to strike her forty times with my riding crop rather than take away her garden privileges."

Mavid cringed. "How has she acted since then?"

"Pleasant."

Mavid nodded his head in understanding. "Then you should certainly be suspicious of her."

"A part of me would really like to believe that she was sincere when she said she would behave from now on… that she learned her lesson." Jareth went to the wall where their armor was waiting and took down a thickly padded safety vest from the rack, strapping it on. Mavid took the other one down and placed it on as well, then they both grabbed the leather gauntlets that would protect their arms and wrists, strapping them on.

A course and loud braying came from behind them and they looked back at the Pegasus in the large room with them. The floor was completely covered with loose sand to both hinder the horse and protect any rider, effectively shifting the odds in their favor. The large white horse was bridled and saddled, something that already had it riled up. Five larger than average goblins surrounded it, holding tight to ropes that were connected to the golden bridal so its head was all but immobile. It shrilled and stomped its hooves angrily, trying to move but failing as the goblins pulled tight simultaneously.

"You will want to be sure to keep her inside for now on then," Mavid shrugged, referring to Sarah.

"I plan to let her go back outside as soon as she asks me," Jareth shrugged.

Mavid cast him a look like he believed him to be out of his mind.

Jareth smirked, "You will of course follow and watch her."

Mavid let out a low chuckle. "Ah, of course."

Jareth turned back to him. "With discretion, please. I don't need her knowing that she is being watched."

Mavid laughed outright at that. "Honestly Jareth, like she would be able to find me if I didn't want to be found. You act as though you've forgotten the special skills the magic in my blood allows me."

Jareth smirked. No, he hadn't forgotten. In a way, it was Mavid's ability that made him possibly Jareth's most valuable asset. There were other fae who could turn into animals, but he had never known another able to do what Mavid was capable of.

"All the same…"

Mavid nodded in understanding and turned back to the tied Pegasus in front of them. They had been working together on the breaking of this one for the better part of the last couple months. It was a stubborn mare, young and bull-headed. She was proving to be very difficult. Although she was saddled, neither Jareth nor Mavid would attempt riding her today. She was still too wild for that, but she needed to get used to the feel of a saddle on her back. Her great white wings stretched out far, almost as long as the ropes that held her immobile. They rose almost vertical before slapping down onto the earth, spraying sand at the goblins and kicking up dust spores.

Jareth grabbed the teaching switch from its place on the wall; a long, flexible, and whip-thin stick that would assist him. He stepped out onto the sand-covered floor. The ceiling was low here, barely high enough for the horse to bring her wings up straight- to prevent her from flying at all.

The mare startled at his approach and fought the hold of the goblins, trying to move away from this new threat. Its large eyes stayed fixed on Jareth. Jareth moved as close to the center of the room as he could, coming within mere feet of the horse. "Release her," he instructed when he was ready.

The goblins all let go and scampered out of the way as the horse immediately darted further away from Jareth, going at a slow trot over to the side of the wall where she stayed put with her back to him just waiting for Jareth to step close enough so it could kick out at him. He wouldn't give it that chance. He slapped the switched on the sand to the horses left side twice, forcing the horse to turn and move right in a light trot in a circle around the enclosed space. Jareth kept her at a steady rhythm and every time she started to slow just a little he would slap the sand behind her with the switch again, forcing her on.

This would go on for hours in order to tire out the beast before they could start working with her.

In the meantime, Jareth was aware of Mavid letting the goblins know to get as many of their friends as they could find and go out into the garden to look for any oddities. Anything they found they would be allowed to keep. After they reported it to Jareth, of course. They left quickly to do so, leaving Mavid and Jareth alone to their work.

The Pegasus started breathing heavily and her movements were getting sluggish as he kept her trotting in a wide circle around and around the room. She slowed down and he slapped the sand behind it.

When that didn't encourage her to speed up he knew this part was almost over with and turned the switch so it struck the back of the horse's leg lightly, enough to sting but not really hurt her at all. The horse stopped in her tracks rather than continuing on and held her ground, panting raggedly.

Jareth clicked his tongue and slapped the horse's rump with the switch. Again, she didn't move. She was too exhausted to fight now. Jareth moved forward, taking up the reins in his fist and leading the worn-out animal into the center of the ring on shaky legs that only acted even more sluggish on the sand. "Too bad I cannot simply make Sarah run in circles like this every night before I attempt to ride her," he laughed despite himself.

Mavid grinned and laughed too. "You probably could if you wanted to, but I would think her trying to buck you off would be the fun part."

Both males laughed and Jareth tugged on the reins, now at the stage where he would lead the horse around the room by the reins now that she was spent and easy to work with. Any other time the Pegasus would be too tired to do anything but comply. For whatever reason, this horse found a second wind enough to first pull against her reins, bringing her head back and Jareth closer to her. She swung her large and heavy head back around with force before either male could begin to react, knocking Jareth hard in the chest, taking the air out of him as the king went sprawling onto the sand. The horse immediately let out a scream that almost sounded like triumphant laughter and advanced on Jareth where he lay on his back in the sand, struggling to regain his air. The sharp hooves hit the ground hard as she moved in to trample out her oppressor.

Mavid was right there in an instant, a cat o' nine tails in his hand which he used to strike back the animal, forcing a retreat out of the beast and protecting Jareth. "What the bloody hell?!" Mavid roared, as surprised as Jareth had been by the sudden upstart from the animal.

Jareth felt his blood boil, blinding him with fury as he climbed slowly to his feet. Nothing was broken and he wasn't really in pain, thank the gods, but he was livid as he found the switch and rounded to get behind the beast but far out of her kicking range.

"Jareth?" Mavid questioned, confused as to what Jareth had planned.

"Get in front of it and secure its head once more!" Jareth barked out.

Mavid did as told, cutting off the horse's escape and gripping hard on the bridal itself, holding the animal with all his strength as the horse tried to twist and swing her head away, crying out hatefully as she was restrained. Jareth came at her from the side and pulled his riding crop out from the inside of his bootleg. Mavid watched in concerned confusion as Jareth climbed up onto the back of the Pegasus in one easy movement.

"What are you doing?!" Mavid demanded as the horse screamed again and redoubled her efforts to break free of Mavid. If she hadn't already been exhausted they would have both been in big trouble by now.

"I am breaking her!" Jareth shouted back in his rage. "Release her!"

Mavid didn't dare argue, saying a silent prayer for Jareth and letting go of the bridal.

The mare leaped into the air and Mavid had to dive out of the way to avoid getting hurt as she came back down after her wings smacked the ceiling with force. The sand shifted and the mare barely kept her footing. Jareth pulled back hard on the reins, forcing the bite to no doubt dig into her jaws as his crop struck the side of her rear.

She would not best him damn it! She would submit to him!

On some level, Jareth knew it wasn't really the mare he was this angry with… this determined to control. The mare was nothing if not raw power and strength, both of which she was using to try her best to throw him from her back. He stubbornly held on and stayed low in the saddle. The power and strength and beauty of this horse would remain long after she was broken, but it would be his to own and control just as much as _she_ was.

The horse broke into a fast trot around the room, chancing to spill them both to the ground as she suddenly stopped and turned in place, completely shifting Jareth's balance and almost throwing him. "Come on," he hissed out under his breath and as if she heard him the mare tried the same trick again, taking off into a trot around the room.

Jareth waited till she just started to slow into a quick stop before leaning way back so that he could pull back on the reins with his full weight. He slapped hard on the horse's rump and side with the crop till the beast let out a shrill scream and pulled back onto her hind legs, her front ones kicking out and her wings fanning out to try to balance her. In the end, she lost it on the sand and Jareth braced himself for the impact as the roughly five-hundred-pound animal came crashing down on top of him. All the air was knocked from him once more as he was pushed deep into the sand. He was dimly aware of the horse kicking on top of him and trying to twist onto her side and Mavid shouting his name somewhere. The mare got on her side and he cried out as her weight shifted onto his leg, but he held on tight anyway and sagged against the powerful body of the Pegasus as she righted herself with him just barely holding on. He was still gasping for air and his ribs and back were killing him. He couldn't even feel his left leg.

Mavid was right there, reaching up to grab the reins but Jareth pulled them away from him. Underneath him the mare didn't move, her breathing ragged and her legs shaking beneath her as she held up both her weight and his own. Her head was held low to the ground. She was beaten. It had been much sooner than they had planned, but now the hard part was over. The breaking was over. Now they would just have to shape her and all she was into something that would benefit them.

Jareth caught his breath and continued to ignore Mavid, kicking his heels against the flanks of the mare till she slowly but surely moved forward and over to the side of the room. Her feet barely keeping her up on the sand.

With a groan, Jareth slid off her back, losing his own footing and thankful that Mavid was right there to catch him. He cried out at the pain that shot up his spine from when he had been caught between the sand and the horse. His leg was getting the feeling back in it and it was nothing good. It was his ribs that hurt the worst though.

"Damn you, Jareth!" Mavid hissed at him as he led him away from the broken mare. "You nearly killed yourself! I thought for sure you were done for when she flipped back onto you. Not to mention she could have broken her wings or even her legs when that happened. Are you in much pain?"

Jareth nodded his head. "My torso and left leg mainly."

"Thank the gods you were wearing your padding then. Anything seem broken?"

"It hurts a little to breathe," Jareth confirmed, allowing Mavid to help him along.

"I'll get you to the healer."

Mavid didn't bother removing either of their paddings or arm guards as he half ushered and half carried Jareth up to the infirmary.

X

"Are you sure you do not want the queen alerted?" Aboris asked Jareth once again as he finished wrapping the bandages around his bruised ribs. The cleric had examined Jareth and found that he had fractured two ribs, twisted his ankle, and popped his leg out of place. It had taken the better part of two hours, but he was able to use magic to reset Jareth's leg, heal the fractures on his ribs, and ease some of the pain he felt. His torso was covered in ugly purple and green bruises though and he had his ankle wrapped.

Jareth cast the healer a glare. "I told you before. No."

Aboris looked taken aback by Jareth's sharp tone. He was a young and low-ranking elf that was just getting his footing in medicine and was easy to intimidate. He was a good healer, and anyone that could work for half a year in the labyrinth could usually become very successful in the healing arts.

Jareth didn't want Sarah to find out about this if he could help it. It was bad enough that _he_ knew it had happened. He had been utterly foolish and knew that Mavid would give him a lot of guff for it, probably until he healed… which was why he had told the male to go find something else to do till he needed him again. Mavid begrudgingly left the medic to his ministrations, casting Jareth a look that screamed that he was far from done chewing him out for his rashness. It had been too soon to try to break the mare and she had been in fighting spirits at the time. She could have killed them both. But he had let his anger get the better of him. Yes, he had come out ahead, but he was very battle worn from it and had almost gotten far worse in the process.

He would be very happy if no one beyond himself, Mavid, and Aboris knew about his foolishness.

"Just do your job," Jareth hissed at Aboris. He turned away, trying to think of how he would be able to hide his injuries from Sarah. The magic would help him heal quicker, but these bruises around his ribs would last at least another day or two… even longer for his ankle to completely recover. Jareth shook his head at himself and scowled when he could hear the sand flying from his hair onto the floor at his movement.

X

"Oh, my goodness, no wonder your behind is so tender!" Clora gushed, her face a picture of absolute horror by the time Sarah finished telling her about what Jareth had done to her. She had left out the part about the worm in the garden but had mentioned being out in the garden and how Ishapell had told on them to Jareth for taking off their shoes. She told the female about how Jareth had ordered her on her knees and whipped her, then taken away her right to go out into the garden… which was why they were currently walking around the halls of the castle aimlessly… Ishapell trailed along far behind them, her head once more buried in one of her books so she wouldn't be a part of their conversations. They kept their voices down.

They were also walking around the castle halls, of course, because Sarah still couldn't sit down without screaming in pain.

"You know what," Clora smiled at Sarah, "I bet we could go outside anyway. Do you know if he locked the door?"

Sarah shook her head earnestly. "There is no way I am going to try that," _yet_ , "He'll just do this to me again! Besides, Ishapell would practically fly to his side to tell him if we did."

Sarah cast a frown at Clora. "You spent all day moping about walking around in the garden yesterday anyway. Why would you want to go back?"

Clora let out a dramatic sigh. "Because this castle is so boring and if we must walk around at least flowers would be better to look at than a bunch of stained stone walls. I understand though and I guess you're right. It wouldn't be a good idea to go outside. It's too bad you can't sit dow-"

Sarah and Clora came to an abrupt halt when a door up ahead of them opened and a female immerged, thin as a stick with long corn-white blonde hair that hid her face from them as she limped out of the room, scantily clad in little more than a robe. It took Sarah a moment to realize it, but she was staring at Tallia, Toby's wet nurse. The female's sad eyes landed on them and she quickly looked away to the floor, bowing low to Sarah before darting down the hall and out of sight.

"What the-" Sarah began, only to be cut off when the door to the room Tallia had just come from opened again and Mavid stepped out into the hall, re-clasping his black leather vest down the front of his torso.

He looked as surprised to see them as Sarah was to see him, quickly regaining his composure and bowing low to Sarah like nothing odd had just happened. "My lady," he greeted.

Sarah wasn't sure what to say. She knew something had just happened behind that door but she wasn't entirely sure what. She wondered if Mavid and Tallia had been having sex in there, but the fact that Tallia was limping and seemed very embarrassed made her think that maybe he had punished her for some other insignificant crime for Jareth… maybe even both.

"Do you require my assistance with anything?" he asked in a dull voice, being purely polite to her.

Sarah wasn't sure what had happened, and as confused as she was all she could do was shake her head "no".

Mavid nodded and straightened up, moving around the three women who now stood together since Ishapell had caught up to them and continued down the hall in the direction they had just come from.

Sarah watched him go, trying to figure out just what had just been done to Tallia.

Clora chuckled softly next to her, startling her as she turned to the female in question. "What?"

Clora looked over at her with a certain glee in her eyes. "Well, I was just thinking that he probably shouldn't be so rough on her if she's to continue to be of use enough to feed the prince. He wouldn't want to squeeze all her milk from her, after all."

"Don't be so course, Clora," Ishapell warned, her lips drawing tight.

"I don't know what you mean," Sarah admitted.

Clora laughed quietly again and turned to Sarah. "They just had sex, of course."

"How can you tell that?"

"Because he was putting his clothes back on and she didn't have any. As Jareth's personal confidant, he is allowed to seek out sex with any of the serving females in this castle whenever he wishes. I hear talk though that he's into some interesting things," Clora grinned slyly.

"What things?" Sarah asked despite herself, earning a grin from Clora and a look of rebuke from Ishapell. She couldn't help it, the way Tallia had limped away like that…

"Things not to be discussed between ladies," Ishapell hissed.

"Let's not discuss them then," Clora grinned wickedly, hurrying past Sarah and over to the door where the two had just come out of. She looked around the hall as if to see that no one else was watching as she reached for the handle.

"What are you doing?!" Sarah gasped, moving over to Clora. Ishapell looked just as shocked.

Clora shrugged and looked over at her. "Just a peak. These are his rooms, aren't they? He is a servant. We are allowed to look in his rooms if we wish and no one can say boo about it. Besides, I kind of want to see what I would be getting myself into if I were to decide to call upon him."

"Call upon him?!"

"You cannot be serious Clora," Ishapell piped in.

"Why?" Clora shrugged, "For a servant, he is rather attractive. Aren't you curious too, Sarah?"

"I don't even understand what you are talking about!" Sarah sighed again in exasperation. What did she mean "call upon"? Even if he was a servant they couldn't really be talking about looking in on his rooms to see what had gone on in there. And what about Tallia? Sarah wanted to go and find the girl and make sure she was okay. She could only hope that whatever happened behind those doors had been consensual, but had a suspicion that it probably hadn't been so.

It was Ishapell that answered Sarah, "Clora is talking about… intercourse. She wants to know what Mavid's tastes are in the bedroom in case she should ever feel inclined to call upon him for herself. As a servant, if he were called upon by a lady or lord to service them he would be unable to refuse."

Sarah wasn't confused anymore… she was disgusted, and she was sure her shock probably showed on her face.

Clora giggled at her, "Oh, don't make that face, Sarah. It's just the way things are."

"Things could stand to be changed around here. You mean he gets no say in it whatsoever?"

"Yes, just like Tallia didn't have any say a moment ago. It really isn't a big deal around here."

"In the Labyrinth?"

"In the Underground."

This was all just so wrong. Everyone just raping each other and no one giving it a second thought. Even the rapists were getting raped down here and it was all taken in stride. "Any lady or… lord? What if he doesn't like men?"

Clora and Ishapell simply exchanged looks. Obviously, that didn't matter either.

She felt herself tense all over as a sudden thought struck her. "Has Jareth ever… with him…?"

Clora shrugged. "Certainly not that I know of. Not that I want to know what my cousin is doing in his bedroom, but I don't think I've ever heard tell of Jareth being with any male alone. In groups and threesomes involving women maybe, but I don't think ever just one on one men. It's not something that's uncommon down here though. Us Fae are very indulgent creatures. We don't tend to discriminate pleasures in life like other species do… especially humans. Sex, drink, drugs… we don't tend to focus on any of the negative sides of it. Indulgence is bliss after all."

Sarah could barely grasp the concept behind Clora's words, but from what she knew of Jareth she doubted that they were anything but the absolute truth.

Clora went to push against the door to Mavid's room.

"Stop!" Sarah practically shouted.

Clora took her hands off the door as if it had just scalded her. She looked over at Sarah with wide eyes. "What? What is it?"

She didn't want to see just what had been left out behind there. She figured it would be best all-around if she didn't know exactly what Mavid was into sexually when left to his own devices, as well as not knowing just what had been done to Tallia. "I wish to respect his privacy and I would like you to do the same. Let's just go."

Clora paused as if deciding whether to take Sarah's advice.

Ishapell saw the moment of indecision and stepped up next to Sarah. "She is the queen," she reminded Clora in a harsh tone.

After half a second's pause, Clora smiled broadly in much the same pleasant way that a naughty child would when seeing an opportunity for mischief. "Of course, she is. I wouldn't dream of- oops!" she said in a sickly-sweet tone when she pushed the door open but kept her eyes fixed on Sarah so she wasn't looking in… not yet anyways. "My mistake. Shall I close the door then so no one else can invade upon the male's privacy?"

Sarah felt her face heat up slightly. Clora didn't mean any harm, but she was blatantly disregarding Mavid's privacy. Also, she had just disobeyed her… not that Sarah expected anyone to obey her. She wasn't one to lord her position over others… or even admit to it openly.

"Clora!" Ishapell scolded the female in disbelief.

Clora shrugged, "Accident, of course. I suppose if either of you wanted to close it yourselves…"

When neither Sarah nor Ishapell said anything Clora turned back and took in an eyeful of the room before letting out a sigh and pulling the door closed once again. "Well, you both can relax. If they did have anything out beside their own bodies he packed it away."

She turned back to Sarah. "So, what now?"

"Clora, you just disobeyed the queen." Ishapell hissed.

Sarah couldn't help but frown at Ishapell then. She would no doubt report this too to Jareth, just like everything else so far. "I don't care if she did this time," Sarah snapped at the taller blonde. "She didn't hurt anything and I never actually ordered her not to in the first place. Just lay off."

Ishapell looked completely confused. "Lay off?"

"Yeah, it means chill out… calm down… just forget it."

Ishapell looked offended for half a second before she collected herself and raised her chin in superiority to Sarah. "Ladies of the court never say 'yeah' your majesty. They say 'yes'."

The image of jumping on her and slapping her face in popped into Sarah's head briefly before she got a grip on herself. "Yeah, okay," Sarah huffed purposefully, turning her back on Ishapell.

Clora gave her an encouraging and at the same time apologetic smile as she linked her arm with Sarah's. "You know, I bet we could go to see the medic and have him get you a cream or something that would have your bum completely healed by supper time."

Sarah peaked up at that. "There is a doctor here?"

"Well he's studying but just the same he's already very good. Should we at least see? At the very least I'm sure you can have him do something to help with the pain. Should we go see?"

That really did sound like a good idea. If Jareth made her sit down at supper like she was now she would want to probably just drown herself in the soup… or possibly throw the scalding hot soup into his lap so that he would know her discomfort… that, however, would no doubt doom any plans she had of going into the garden tonight.

She nodded her head and allowed Clora to lead her down the hall in the direction of the medical wing, Ishapell trailing along behind them sullenly.

X

Jareth inhaled deep on the little pipe that he held in his hand, the smoke filling his lungs as quickly as it did his head and took the edge off the pain he felt in his chest and leg. He lounged on his side on the little cot. The Elf moss that Aboris had given him for the pain was very strong and potent and filled the entire room with a heady earthy scent. He exhaled with a sigh and relaxed for a moment with his head on his bicep.

The door to the medical ward flew open in a rush and he could hear the feminine giggling milliseconds before Sarah and Clora came into the doorway, stopping in their tracks when they both saw him and their giggling dying off sharply. Jareth quickly sat up straight in the cot, only to fall still as the room spun for a second and caught up with him. He set the pipe down next to him as Aboris came into the room from a little side door that led to the supply closet.

"Your majesty!" Aboris gasped before dropping into a surprised bow, "I am honored you are here, but how did you find out?"

Sarah wasn't even paying attention to the healer, her eyes were wide in shock and she was staring between Jareth and the pipe next to him like she didn't know what she was more surprised to see. "Did Mavid tell you I was here?" Jareth demanded of her, his voice sounding slightly less interrogating than he had meant for it to. For crying out loud, it wasn't like he had even smoked that much and already all his senses were fuzzy around the edges.

"Mavid? No, he… what are you doing up here?" she asked, still in surprise. Clora looked equally surprised and behind them, Ishapell looked slightly amused at the turn of events.

"His majesty is-" Aboris cut himself off at the glare Jareth shot him. It didn't really matter though. Sarah's eyes were already narrowed in on the bandages wrapped all the way around his torso to hide his bruises. She wouldn't know what had happened on her own, but now she did at least know he was injured. That was enough.

"I had some minor bruising is all," he snapped, mostly because he was angry at the way she had managed to catch him off guard.

Sarah looked back over at the little pipe next to him. It didn't look like any regular pipe to her, being made of the horn of a kid and wrapped in a spiraling strand of mint leaf to help awaken the senses enough to allow in more of whatever drug it was packed with, but she had seen him using it to know what it was. "You smoke?!" she asked in astonishment.

"Well, not regularly…" he grinned, despite himself. The drug was definitely getting to him, he was finding the way that Sarah's cleavage rose and fell with her breaths was far more interesting than anything else at the moment and he was having trouble getting the grin off his face. "Clora, Ishapell, you two may relinquish your duties to my wife for the rest of the day." She was with him now after all.

Ishapell gave a curtsey and left right away, Sarah and Clora exchanged confused and somewhat worried looks. Sarah gave a nod though and Clora hurried away down the hall. Sarah turned back and simply waited for whatever she thought he would do next. Jareth held his hand out to her and let out a sigh as the drug caused him to stay involuntarily relaxed. Sarah hesitated, but then took his hand and made no fight against him as he pulled her over to him, he took both her hands in his and rubbed his thumbs over her knuckles gently as she stood between his parted knees.

"You may go as well, Aboris." Jareth dismissed the healer.

The elf bowed low and fled back through into his office room.

Sarah refused to meet his eyes as she stood in front of him, staring instead at his chest, but without actually looking at him. "What are you doing here, Sarah?" he asked, getting straight to the point.

"I could ask you the same," she said defensively before catching herself and shrugging off the tone she had just used, opting instead to calm herself down and just answer him. "I mean, I just came here to see about your doctor possibly healing the remains of my… punishment." The last word was clipped, but so slightly that it could have almost been missed. She was playing nice with him. He didn't know whether it was because she feared his anger or hoped to gain something from him, but either way, it was nice to have her acting decently towards him for once… So long as she didn't do anything stupid, of course.

Jareth nodded his head in thoughtful understanding as his thumbs stopped brushing to simply hold her hands in his. "I see… However, it wouldn't be much of a punishment if you didn't experience the entirety of it, now would it? A bit of lingering pain can help to remind a person of their offenses and provide motivation to act accordingly."

He fought to hide his smirk when Sarah's eyes darted up to his in obvious disagreement and astonishment but she regained herself quickly and dropped her gaze back down to his chest. Despite the frown, he could see twitching around the corners of her face she nodded her head, but her tone was a low warning of her disagreement, "I suppose…"

Jareth smiled at that. She was so cute like this, trying not to show him how angry she was. Trying hard to behave for whatever reason. He suspected she still desperately wanted to be let out into the garden yet today. He would have to find Mavid at some point and see if the goblins found anything.

He knew he was probably pushing it, but if she was being pleasant to him… Jareth used her hands to pull her closer to him, having her lean in so he could kiss her. He felt her hesitate, but she wasn't as tense as usual as she leaned forward compliantly and placed her lips against his. Her kiss lacked any fire- good or bad- but she was obedient enough to allow him to circle his arms around her waist and pull her against him as he brushed his lips over hers.

He wondered if she would be able to hold onto her anger or displeasure if he pushed things even further by deepening the kiss or outright groping her but decided not to test her just now. There would be time no doubt. He did have to fight against the cruel temptation though. Slowly, he pulled his lips back from hers but kept her against him, surprised when he pulled away to see she looked neither angry nor tense, but her eyes held curiosity and calculation… even a sliver of her own cruelness and Jareth wondered if he would be wise to release her for a moment.

Her hands were on the cot on either side of his hips. He fought to not jump when they lifted to rest against his hips, tracing very slowly up his sides. Her eyes were locked on his now as her hands slowly inched closer and closer towards his bruised ribs and the bandages that covered them. He saw the cruelness in her eyes as the gears turned inside her mind and he gave her a stern look of warning as his own hands tightened slightly on her waist, a gesture she didn't seem to even notice and if she did she paid it no mind. No doubt she thought that the effects of the drug on him, as well as his weakened state, put her on slightly more level footing with him. A foolish and naïve assumption.

"Why are you here?" she asked him, her tone low and falsely sweet.

Jareth could feel his heart speed up just slightly in his chest as her fingers skimmed over his bandaged sides, stopping right over the bruises. Surely, she wouldn't be stupid enough to willfully cause him pain just because she could tell he suffered some sort of injury.

Jareth didn't chance it though as he brought his hands back to grab hers and forcefully move them back down onto either side of him on the cot. She glanced down at his bandaged chest when he did so but offered up no further action, not even to pull against his hold as she allowed his hands to cover hers upon the cot.

Jareth frowned down at her. "I have a few bruises is all," he warned her, not liking the way she eyed his bandages one little bit.

"How did you get them?" she asked. If it were coming from anyone else such a question would have been one of concern, and although she did a fair job sounding like she might also be concerned for him, the look in her eyes screamed otherwise.

Jareth threw her hands away from him back at her sides. "That is none of your business," he hissed.

Sarah widened her eyes as if she was hurt, but he could still see the coldness in the orbs. She could act like the concerned sweet wife all she wanted, but she wouldn't fool him till she was able to fool herself, and they both knew that wouldn't be soon. He could see her as clearly as though her stage makeup were flaking off and her costume falling to pieces around her. "I was just concerned is all. You needn't snap at me."

Jareth let out a sigh. So, she would keep playing her little part. Fine. Let her. "It really isn't anything to worry yourself over, just a few bruises and an achy foot. I will be completely better in no time."

Sarah frowned a little then. "But I have to put up with my pain?" she asked.

"Mine was not from a punishment for ill behavior." He could see in her eyes she didn't entirely believe that but she held her tongue. She probably firmly believed that he was perfectly accountable to any accident or freak tragedy that would befall him. How cruel she could be.

"What have you been up to today then?" he asked, switching the subject.

She shrugged. "Nothing, I can't go outside and I can't sit down properly so we have just been walking in circles around the castle." her voice held only the slightest traces of bitterness towards him when she spoke. Her eyes were completely serious when she looked back to him. "Jareth, I wanted to ask you something actually."

Here it came, she would ask to go out into the garden and he would ponder on it… maybe requiring that she ask very nicely before saying yes. "And what is that, precious?"

"Is it true that when a servant is asked to bed by a superior they absolutely cannot refuse… even if another one of the same sex asks for them and they are themselves straight?"

What the hell?! Why would she ask something like that? Where would such a question even come from? Jareth could feel himself scowling in confusion and suspicion and Sarah attempted to step back from him but he held onto her hands- not enough to hurt, but to get the point across that he wouldn't be letting go just yet. "Why would you want to know a thing like that?"

She looked embarrassed and as if she were just wishing she had kept her mouth shut as she shifted her weight back and forth on her feet. "We were walking today and Clora mentioned it after we saw Mavid-"

Jareth's hands tightened down on hers before he even realized what he was doing and she gasped in both surprise and pain. "You wish to call Mavid to your bed?!"

Any pain that was on her face disappeared like it had been slapped off and replaced by complete and utter shock at his assumption. "W-what?! No! Jareth, I saw Tallia limping out of his room earlier and Clora said that servants had no choice if even higher-ranking servants like Mavid wish to call on them… and that she might just call on Mavid. I was wondering if that was true is all!"

Jareth released her hands entirely, inwardly chastising himself for his own suspicions. "Ah, forgive me, precious… Yes, that is true. A servant would have to accept an invitation from another of higher ranking, but there is more to it than that. I could command one such as Tallia into our bed - _hypothetically, Sarah, now stop scowling at me_ \- but if another lord came here and wished to bed her the polite thing would be for him to ask my permission first. Then if she truly doesn't want to she could come to me and ask that I not allow him. If he were to take her anyway after being told no it would be considered a great affront to my authority and a challenge to my position in my own castle."

"So, you gave Mavid permission to sleep with Tallia?"

The corner of his lip curled up despite himself. "Mavid is my trusted friend and practically my second in command. I gave him permission long ago to go after any servant he sees fit. Currently, Tallia is the only female servant of the Fae that I have here in my castle. I would be amazed if this were the first time he had gone after her. Just so you are aware though she has not come to me at all to try to stop his advances. I will ask him to be a bit more discrete for now on though so you needn't worry about it."

"I just happened upon it by chance, I don't mind what he does as long as those he does it with are willing. He could be taking Tallia into his room to play scrabble and I wouldn't care in the slightest as long as she was willing."

Jareth laughed loud and obnoxiously at that, his laughter filling the small space of the room. "As if anyone is willing to play scrabble!" he laughed.

She said nothing but frowned nonetheless. She liked scrabble. That wasn't the point though.

Jareth finally got a hold of himself and reached out for her hands again when he saw her pouting in front of him once more. "Come now, Sarah, no need to be touchy. If Clora asks me for permission to call Mavid to her I will deny her though."

Sarah looked up in confusion at that. "You would?"

Jareth nodded his head. "Mavid has already expressed to me his opinions on both my cousins and I don't hold any dislike for him to push a female like Clora on him."

Sarah frowned at his insulting manner of the only friend she had here. "What is that supposed to mean?"

Jareth smirked at her as if there was something she was missing that should have been obvious. "Clora is a bit…" he searched for the right word, "of a spoilt brat still. She is young as fae go and she tends to not care about anything else over her own amusement. If you were to ask my opinion I think my uncle would have done well to spank the life out of that girl on several occasions. I am glad that you have made a friend of her, but I won't lie and say that I wouldn't like to send her back to my uncle so she will not be an influence on you. I had hoped that you and Ishapell would become friends rather than Clora, but then again I suppose you and Clora are more alike."

Her eyes narrowed at that. "You think I'm a spoilt brat?" she asked in a low tone.

Jareth laughed outright at that and pulled her in closer to wrap his arms around her waist. "Very much yes, but you have heart, precious." She allowed him to lean in and place a kiss on the tip of her nose but she didn't seem amused. To her credit, she was behaving very well now that she wanted something very badly from him. Hopefully, by allowing her to go out into the garden again, she would continue to be pleasant. Jareth just prayed that she wasn't doing anything stupid out there.

"And have you ever… called someone to your bed like that?" she asked, her voice hesitant like she wasn't sure she wanted to know.

"Several times, but they all found enjoyment in it. I don't think I have ever been turned down before." _Until you, of course_ , he thought bitterly to himself. He ran his hands over her skirts and waist. She couldn't refuse him anymore though.

She frowned slightly at that.

"I haven't since before you beat my labyrinth if that's what you are worried about," he assured her. While the fae didn't really care too much about monogamy, he remembered from his second marriage that humans could hold very firm beliefs on it. Since he didn't mind either way he decided to respect their wishes for it. He would be ever faithful to Sarah if she wanted him to be, but he would expect the same from her. Even if she would be fine with him sleeping with others, he wouldn't care for her to do the same so that alone caused him to absolutely refrain from it.

"I wasn't really worried… about that," she said, refusing to meet his eyes. "Jareth?"

"Yes?"

"Have you ever… that is, have you-"

Whatever she was wanting to ask him she was having a hard time of it. "Spit it out, Sarah," he encouraged her softly.

She still refused to look into his eyes as she took a breath. "Have you ever asked Mavid… into your bed that is?"

Jareth's lip twitched slightly at that. "Well, not him alone if that is what you mean. Although I do not mind men, I do not go seeking out acts with them. He has participated with me before on numerous women if you wanted to know that."

Sarah shuddered and her cheeks pinkened becomingly. "I don't think I did."

Jareth leaned forward and placed a kiss against the heat of her cheek. "You are my wife now, Sarah. I can find my pleasures in you alone," he assured her. "Just like you can find yours in me."

She didn't say anything to that, continuing to simply stare at his chest in thought.

"Did you want to go back out into the garden?" he asked, tired of waiting for her to do so.

Her eyes widened and she looked at him like she couldn't believe he had just asked her that. "In the- do you mean it?"

He nodded his head and ran his hands up and down over her back. "You've been very good, I'd say you have learned your lesson. Do you think you have?"

Sarah nodded her head eagerly, her face weary like she expected him to at any second tell her he was just kidding about the whole thing and laugh at her. Truly she didn't give him enough credit.

Jareth leaned forward and this time brushed his lips over hers. They were soft and warm against him and he felt her part them slightly as she waited for more. He pulled back mere centimeters from her. "Our deal remains, Sarah. You are allowed out there if you continue to behave. I would hate to have to take it away again. Don't give me a reason."

She shook her head slightly and he leaned back in, drawing her against him as he kissed her once again. Anything she was up to out there was almost worth it to have her acting so nicely to him for a change. She had acted more like a real wife today than she had since coming to the castle. He liked having a wife rather than a screaming and crying brat who treated him like scum rather than the king he was. And it was so much easier to be nice to her as well.

X

Sarah tried not to smile against his lips, only then to decide that it would probably help more than hurt so she did anyway. Let him think she was happy to be kissing him or something… she would get to see the worm tonight after all. She could see the light at the end of her dark tunnel and nothing was stopping her now from running into it at full speed!

What she wouldn't give to see the look on Jareth's face when she and Toby made it to the Aboveground…


	13. Chapter 13

the song Heartbreaker isn't mine either it's Pat's So disclaimer on that. Also, editing for this chapter is done by The Art of Suicide

X

Sarah couldn't help but smile in pleasure as she ate another bite of her brownie. Jareth had in an unexpected turn of kindness decided that instead of eating in the dining room with everyone to just have him, Sarah, and of course Toby take supper in his room.

This allowed Sarah to avoid the hard seats of the chairs in the dining hall and she was now laying on her stomach across the head of the bed with her plate of desert in front of her while Jareth sat near the center of the bed with Toby sitting sideways on his knee, a bottle firmly gripped between his hands and lips. Jareth had mentioned tomorrow they would attempt to switch Toby over to solid foods. Sarah thought if nothing else that would be interesting to see. Most likely Jareth would have Tallia handle that rather than risk getting spit-up baby food all over himself. No matter how good he was with Toby, Sarah still noticed that he left all the mess work to the wet nurse.

She figured after supper she would ask Jareth if she could take Toby and go out into the garden with him. Although she knew the worm had said nothing about leaving tonight, it would be easier to get Toby out there alone with her when the time was right if she started taking him with her as soon as possible. She couldn't deny though that there was a little hope against hope playing around the back of her mind that maybe- _just maybe_ \- since she would have Toby the worm could just lead them out of the garden tonight and through the labyrinth to safety with the Underground Women.

Sarah stabbed her fork into the center of her brownie and lifted the whole thing to her mouth, missing whatever Jareth had just said to her when a piece dropped onto the bed sheet and she scrambled after it with a smirk, catching it before anything could get stained. She looked over at Jareth. "What?"

He was watching her with a look on his face that on any other man would have said something along the lines of "Really?! Come on!". She ignored his impatience and his obvious haughtiness towards her table manners. He let out a great sigh like it was a tragedy that he had to repeat himself. "If you had been listening… you would have heard me informing you that just like Toby will start to become instructed on how to eat tomorrow, so shall you learn how."

He reached over onto her plate and pulled her fork out from inside the middle of the brownie, placing it back on the side of her try. "For instance, you will know that it is better for you to cut smaller pieces from your food rather than trying to hork it all down your throat in one bite like some fat dog afraid it will be taken away from them if it is not immediately swallowed."

She couldn't fight back her glare at his comparison. For someone who claimed such love and devotion to her, he didn't seem to see her in a very flattering light. So far, he seemed to view her as a gluttonous brat.

Jareth laughed out loud at the glare she gave him, amused greatly by her fire as he cut a small piece off his own brownie and popped it into his mouth.

Sarah had been immensely relieved to find out was that chocolate did, in fact, exist in the Underground. Not that it mattered since she would be going back to the Aboveground soon enough and she could have all the chocolate she wanted there… and pizza… and ice cream… and Chinese food… she found herself smiling dreamily at the thought.

Toby dropped his bottle into Jareth's lap and squealed in a plight for attention, his eyes lighting up when Sarah turned to look at him and smiled. She leaned over closer to him and waved a fork-full (a smaller one) of brownie in the air in front of Toby, "Just think little buddy, soon enough you get to eat this too! Isn't that exciting?"

Toby returned her grin and reached out for the fork but she pulled it back so he couldn't hurt himself or make a mess, pushing herself over on her elbows to lean all the way across Jareth's lap to kiss Toby's cheek before moving back to her spot. "Sa-Sa!" Toby grinned before bringing his hand up to his mouth and flinging it out like he was blowing her a kiss… to which Sarah laughed out loud with happiness.

She glanced up and did a double take when she saw the way Jareth was watching all this play out. He had made no move to intervene with her and Toby at all and had simply sat there to quietly observe despite being so close. There was a look on his face and eyes that was foreign to Sarah, but there was a strong warmth and satisfaction to it, as well as a certain level of vulnerability.

If Jareth had been someone she liked even the least bit and had given her a look like that then her reaction might have been to kiss him sweetly in response. Since he wasn't though, and she could only play so falsely nice and keep her sanity, she didn't. She didn't know how to react to him at that moment, so instead, she turned back to her brownie, picking at it now.

Jareth let out a sigh that was probably best described as a cross between contented and tired from the long day and tried to hand Toby back his bottle. He was having none of it though and pushed it away from the goblin king with a grunt. "I don wa!"

Sarah smiled a little at his refusal but she found herself watching Jareth closely for his reaction, the tiniest bit afraid of what he might do in response. Patiently, Jareth tried to offer him the bottle again but got the same response followed by a bit of a louder refusal. Sarah could tell that another attempt on Jareth's part would only result in Toby throwing a tizzy.

Jareth no doubt saw this too since he simply shrugged and placed the bottle aside. He hiked his knee up and turned Toby about so his chest was against Jareth's leg so he could burp him, patting gently on his back till Toby was able to do so. Toby started to fuss immediately and started to squirm on Jareth's leg making noises that threatened to turn into cries if he didn't get his way. When Jareth easily held him in place and Toby saw he couldn't move off Sarah tensed as an ear-splitting scream erupted from Toby as if he was being murdered… followed by more equally loud screams as he continued to fight and crocodile tears fell quickly from his eyes.

Sarah got up on her knees, ready to take Toby from Jareth and console him if need be, but Jareth simply moved Toby away from her arms and closer to himself, turning Toby around so he could hold him to him in a hug as he whispered soft nothings of comfort into the boy's ear and placed kisses against his cheek, the whole time patting his back as he attempted to kill two birds with one stone by burping him as he comforted him. Toby's cries dwindled but after a couple moments, they were completely cut off as he burped. Jareth smiled over the babe's shoulder slyly at Sarah as he continued to comfort Toby.

Sarah couldn't help but smile too despite herself. Although her bottom still hurt this had been probably the most pleasant meal she and Jareth had been able to share since she had come to the labyrinth. It was far from great, but it was nice enough… nowadays that seemed to say a lot, unfortunately.

Jareth shifted uncomfortably under Toby's weight and held him out to finally relinquish him to Sarah. "Could you-"

As soon as Sarah took Toby from him she caught the momentary movement his hand made to his torso where the bandages were hidden under his white shirt. She still didn't know just what happened to him, but something had hurt him pretty badly today. She also noticed that he walked with a slight limp and a wince like his leg was bothering him. She wanted to ask again but knew he wouldn't tell her or else he would have earlier when she had asked him. Whatever had hurt him, she kind of hoped it had walked away unscathed.

 _Not kind of!_ She did hope it. She wouldn't have minded it bruising him up even more if it had been able to. Even if Jareth had somehow gotten injuries like that from running into a door, she wished the door would have hit him even harder so he would get internal bleeding and die.

A mental image flashed through the forefront of Sarah's mind of how lovingly Jareth had just consoled Toby. He would look at the babe with such tenderness and devotion that was bottomless in their limits and pulled at the corners of her heart every time to see.

Okay, maybe she didn't wish death on him like that… but a black eye would have been acceptable surely.

Toby pulled against her hold and reached out again for Jareth to hold him. "Dada!"

Sarah's heart froze in her chest and she felt like she had stopped functioning completely as Jareth smiled broadly at Toby and scooped him back over into his lap, "Come here, son."

Never mind the black eye! Internal bleeding hands down if there had been any justice!

This wasn't right! Jareth may be Toby's biological father but it was her dad that was Toby's "dada". Roger had been the one to hold Toby at the hospital after he had been born. Roger had been the one to love and help raise him as he had Sarah during Toby's first year. It had been him that Toby had first called "dada". Could Toby really have forgotten her dad already? The only father he knew was already replaced by Jareth?! How long before he would look at her and call her mama?

They had to leave… and the sooner the better.

"Why the frown, precious?" Jareth asked, stirring her from her thoughts, "Too full to finish your dessert?"

Sarah forced the frown from her face and tried hard to pull off a simply serene look on her face since she wasn't too confident in being able to smile now. "It's nothing."

Of course, he wouldn't just leave it alone. "Tell me what's wrong," his voice was gentle and coaxing, but lord forbid he actually ask and not demand.

Sarah shrugged her shoulders. "Toby has been fussy all night and I just realized he hasn't been outside in a long time. Some fresh air could do his mood good… both of ours. Maybe I could take him out into the garden with me for a short walk after supper?" She made sure to sound casual about it like she didn't really care if she didn't get to go outside yet today.

She noticed that Jareth's eyes narrowed just the slightest bit, but he voice was just as casual when he answered. "I suppose that would be alright, as long as you are careful. Would you like me to join you perhaps?"

 _No!_ Sarah smiled apologetically at him and played coy. "That would be nice, but I was thinking maybe it would give me a chance to finally just have some alone time with Toby. I never get to anymore. It's always with either the girls or you or everyone else. Just a little bonding time, ya know? I used to take him with me through the park, this would be kind of like that." She looked up at him with puppy-dog eyes. "If that's okay…"

Jareth was silent for a moment, eventually though he nodded his head in agreement. "But make sure you keep to the trail and keep your shoes on. You will come back inside before the sun completely sets. There are things in the garden that could be dangerous to one who isn't familiar with the different plants of the labyrinth."

Boy, didn't she know it. She nodded her head vigorously, thrilled that he was actually going to let her do this and trying to hide just how happy she was about it. She did offer him up a smile now though, "Thank you, Jareth."

He kept his eyes on her for a moment. There was some emotion playing around the edges of them that she couldn't quite guess at, but it wasn't entirely pleasant looking. It was gone quickly though and he shuffled Toby around in his lap so he could lean forward enough to kiss her. She forced herself to not immediately lose her smile as he leaned in and brushed his lips against hers. She even leaned forward a little bit so he would be able to reach easier. She was surprised when his hand reached back behind her head, trapping her as he pressed his lips against hers till it hurt before abruptly drawing back from her.

Sarah couldn't help but feel confused as he shifted Toby out of his lap and back over into her arms. He got up from the bed and started to unbutton his shirt as he headed toward the bathroom, no doubt getting ready to wash up for the night. He didn't even look back at her as the door closed behind him. Sarah waited till she heard the water running before climbing up from the bed, sweeping Toby from it with her and climbing back into the shoes that Jareth had allowed her to take off while she was in bed eating. If she didn't know better she would have thought that maybe he was upset with her for something, but what had she done? She decided not to dwell on it, holding Toby against her and leaving the room to go down to the garden door.

X

Jareth turned on the water to the tub, but kept the rest of his clothes on, waiting till he heard Sarah close the door to their room before turning the water back off. He watched the water drain back out before turning and going back through the bedroom, opening the door that led out into the hall. Sarah had already vanished down the hall.

"Mavid."

Jareth looked to his left as he caught movement in his peripheral vision. The shadows down the hall rippled and Mavid stepped out from them, except he didn't look like Mavid… well, maybe looked like his shadow. It was Mavid, but he was made up of darkness, blending in seamlessly with shadows. His skin and hair were nothing but black, not as if he had been painted, but more like he had just been replaced by a void. All that could be seen was an outline of him and two slightly deeper voids where his eyes would normally be. That was the only way to tell if he was looking at you, and even then, it was questionable as to if he was.

The void that was Mavid stepped forward, a walking shadow. "Yes, Jareth," he acknowledged, already knowing perfectly well what was expected of him as he moved over and leaned against the wall, becoming a shadow on it once more before Jareth watched him move twice as fast as he could in his regular form down the hall in the direction of the gardens after Sarah.

When his parents had purchased Mavid for him no one had known or would have been able to guess at what abilities he would come to possess from his own magic. When they found out though they had worked quickly to make sure that as few people as possible knew about the rare gift that Mavid possessed, one that Jareth was grateful to have at his hands and had found handy on several occasions. No one could hide like Mavid could.

Jareth reached up and pressed his fingers against his lips, where he could still feel Sarah's. Supper had been so good between them for once, till he was reminded that she was pulling something behind his back. And then she had asked to take Little Jareth along with her. She was up to something, and now she was bringing his son into it as well. If she really intended to do anything stupid… what if Mavid had been right and she had figured out how to escape the garden? Jareth shook his head to clear it and moved back into his room, sighing and flopping down on the bed so he was spread out on his stomach.

She turned his head completely around without much more than a gesture. She was playing with him, toying with him and using his dreams against him. If anyone else, woman, man, child, demon tried such a thing he would have made them very sorry for it and stopped it right away. With Sarah, though… he just wanted to let her do it. Even when he knew it was fake, it was still worth it for the brief moments that he could forget that it was all just pretend… for now anyway.

X

Mavid stayed in the shadows so that he wouldn't stand out at all, having had much practice with this kind of thing. He had spied on everything from opposing rulers of enemy kingdoms to that blasted chilly gang that roamed the labyrinth causing trouble. He could not come into contact with anyone with this form. He could speak, but that was all and he was usually exhausted every time he came back into his regular form. Becoming a void was easy for him, filling it was much more difficult. He also had to be careful when he was out and about that he stuck to shadows as much as possible, otherwise he could be seen.

He had to stay low and off the trail since there were no walls to cast shadows into the garden, but the sun was setting and shadows were growing longer and thicker in its yawning. He sat down on the ground about fifteen feet away from where Sarah was and watched her closely. She had been walking very slowly indeed through the garden, looking around like she wanted to memorize every little plant and leaf as she went along. She rocked the babe against her hip but didn't really pay much attention to him, her mind elsewhere.

The babe saw this and reached out for a strand of hair near her forehead, giving it a sharp pull to seek her attention. She yelped from the unexpected pain and seized his fist in her hand so he would have to release her. "Toby, stop that. I get enough of that from _him_ ," she snapped bitterly.

Toby continued to squirm in her arms and started to fuss to keep her attention on him.

Sarah shifted him in her arms and let out a sigh of slight annoyance. She continued to walk along, singing to him softly under her breath a song that Mavid was unfamiliar with but assumed it must be native to the Aboveground. Mavid continued to keep low and every now and then would inch along behind her.

" _You're the right kind of sinner, to release my inner fantasies, the invincible winner, and you know that you were born to be…_

 _You're a heartbreaker, dream maker, love taker don't you mess around with me…"_

They moved on like this for another verse, but then she seemed to get so far and Mavid froze in his position when she turned around and headed back towards him. It wouldn't have mattered, he was well hidden, but with how intensely she was looking around her surroundings she stood a good chance of finding him.

She was looking for something particular alright. There was no question about it. Earlier the goblins had raked over the entirety of the garden and found nothing important, bits of junk, a garden trawl, a rusty old hook that one of them had wanted to keep for his lunch… but nothing of consequence. She was looking for something though, something small from the looks of it. She obviously hadn't found the way out of the garden yet. She wouldn't succeed going about it like that either.

They had suspected she had found something of interest, but it seemed like she was just searching as much as she could in case she did find anything. Mavid was just about to retreat from his post when she called out to someone, stilling him instantly when he thought she might have spoken to him.

"Hello?" she whispered, looking around her in worry. "Hello?"

Mavid frowned at that. She was looking for a someone?! No one was allowed in the gardens without the king's permission.

"Hello?" she asked again. "Oh, I mean 'ello?"

She was starting to obviously become worried as she continued to look for whoever she couldn't seem to find. "Where is he?" she asked herself.

Toby started to fuss in her arms again, threatening to cry if she didn't do something soon.

Sarah let out an irritated sigh and turned back to Toby, "I know, Toby, trust me I know how you feel right now." She hugged him to her and kissed his cheeks, soothing his tears before he could begin a real bawl fest. She turned back around and headed further away from Mavid down the path, further into the garden. She started singing softly to Toby again, but every now and then she would stop and whisper another "hello?" as she went.

Mavid stayed with her patiently, a constant shadow as she moved along. Her hopes visibly sinking with each passing moment and it was only continuing to grow darker. She would need to go back inside soon. He had rather hoped that by following her tonight he would either be able to find out if there was, in fact, anything she found or if so what it was so that Jareth could deal with it and they could all move on. It was looking as if he would be following her around again if she didn't find her someone soon.

While he didn't mind the girl herself, he didn't like what she was doing to Jareth. Jareth hadn't acted like himself ever since he had gone to collect his son after she had wished him to the labyrinth. He had always been so poised and collected. The male had his weaknesses though, namely when it came to love. Mavid was aware of how courageously Sarah had run the labyrinth to get back the babe she loved. She had an immense strength of heart that would have demanded respect from any member of the fae.

The problem was Jareth loved just as strongly as she was capable of, but his challenges in this were vastly more arduous than running through a simple maze. And what with his given history in love…

Mavid had seen what love did to people, turning the smartest and strongest into weak fools. He could live fine without it. Sure, he could see the advantages of having someone around, companionship and all… plus the sex whenever you want with someone who has had time to know your body. But it was hardly worth any of that to love someone.

Mavid came out of his thoughts when he realized the sun had all but completely set and she hadn't started to head back yet.

She was just going to get herself in trouble again. Jareth had gone out of his way to make her happy, allowing her to have her way and come back out into the garden, even under the circumstances. Did she appreciate any of it? No, it was almost nightfall and here she was still looking around the garden. It was fruitless now. She wouldn't find whoever she was looking for without light and soon it would be dark enough for him to not have to really stay hidden.

Mavid stilled when Sarah stopped walking and looked around her like she had just noticed that it was almost dark now. Her body shuddered slightly and she clung a little tighter to Toby as a faint noise escaped her. Mavid recognized it instantly. She was trying not to cry again. Even in the fading light, he could see the utter disappointment on her face at not finding whoever it was she had been looking for. She was never done crying it seemed.

Jareth's patience was legendary in the Underground. No one else could cope so well with all the goblin's silly problems and the utter nonsense of the labyrinth. Then the pressures of running a kingdom coupled with the stress of meeting with other rulers and landowners. Throw in a child to raise and anyone else may have had a complete mental breakdown by now. But then putting something like Sarah on top of the mix…

The fact that the girl was still breathing was a testament to the patience the king possessed. Mavid doubted anyone else would have been so with her, even himself. The real laugh in all this was that she didn't even seem to realize just how much she got away with because of Jareth's patience and love for her. She would sorely regret it if he ever ran out of either with her. Carrie certainly had.

He waited a few more moments while the queen simply held the babe to her, crying softly against his little shoulder. She seemed to be able to find a stopping place though, wiping viciously at her tears and then getting a grip on herself before she ran back along the path and past him without so much as a glance, hurrying back inside.

Mavid got up from his position and moved out onto the trail itself, taking one last look around before heading back too.

X

He watched Sarah and the young one go inside.

After which it wasn't long before the shadows of the garden shifted and Jareth's subordinate rose from them, nothing but darkness where he normally would have occupied the space. The male fae's outline shifted as if he was maybe turning his head to look around once more before following along inside.

It had been hard for him to not allow Sarah to know that he was here, but with Jareth's lackey keeping watch over the girl now…

He would just have to try again another night. He would wait for the first opportunity he got. After all, what did the girl have but time at this point?

He could still remember all the times Carrie had come out into the garden, and all the times she had done so to cry in peace after the tragedy when Jareth had started his mistreatment of her. When she had come to the castle to be Jareth's wife she had been the happiest woman anyone had ever met. Everyone had been happy that Jareth had found love again at the castle. It was good news for everyone in the labyrinth. Carrie had been so sweet and lively and he had been happy to have become a close friend to her.

The Path Master couldn't count the number of times he had sat in the garden and chatted with Carrie. She was his friend. So, when Jareth had started to mistreat her he had ached for her every time she had come crying to him.

He had finally decided enough was enough after Jareth had done the unthinkable to her and he told her of the Crying Caves and the Underground Women. If she were to escape Jareth once and for all before he managed to break her that was her best chance. When they had contacted him and told him about Carrie's son and stepdaughter he had not hesitated when they had told him they wanted to help her too.

"Just ya 'old on, Miss. we'll get ya free soon enough."

The worm turned and exited the garden before anyone could happen upon him.

X

Sarah hugged Toby to her, smiling with absolute mirth as she spun him around with her once. He laughed loudly and clung back to her.

"Be careful with him, Sarah. He's not made of steel after all," Karen grinned from on the porch, watching the two of them in the lawn.

"He's not made of glass either," Sarah smiled, but made her way back to the porch anyway.

"Come on inside, precious," her father called her from inside the doors.

Sarah grinned and walked up the steps of the porch, mildly surprised to see them made of cement instead of wood. Karen reached her hand out for Sarah take and Sarah shifted Toby over to her one arm, taking Karen's hand in the other. It didn't feel like Karen's hand though and she looked up to see Jareth was standing there, holding her hand and beckoning her inside. Her little suburban home was gone, along with the porch and the grassy front lawn. It had all been replaced with cold stone and dust and dirt.

She looked up at the castle beyond the goblin city, then back at Jareth. A triumphant grin spreading across his face making him look very dangerous yet handsome at the same time. "Come along inside, precious. It's time for you to come home."

Sarah didn't argue. She was too confused to. Where was her home? She had thought it was here a moment ago. She had been happy a moment ago. She couldn't even remember why or if anything had changed. Hadn't the castle been there a moment ago? She knew it hadn't been, but she couldn't remember what had been there if not it.

Jareth pulled her inside and closed the door behind her. Then there was only darkness.

X

Jareth sat on the edge of the bed, looking down at Sarah while she slept. Last night she had gone out into the garden and when she had returned darkness was just setting in. she hadn't spoken to him except for a word or two when he tried to talk to her. She was obviously very upset about something. After coming inside, she had just helped him put Toby down to bed and then gone into her own room to sleep. Although he had wanted her to stay with him, he had not felt the need to force her into it. Last night he just had not wanted to fight with her.

He was going to wait to see how she treated him this morning. If she was going to be mean and nasty again then there was no reason to keep being so good to her.

Apparently, something had upset her in the garden. He would get the full story from Mavid later, but he was already sure that she had not found whatever she had been wanting to go out into the garden for.

He sat next to her on her bed and looked her over. She always looked so appealing when she slept. She seemed so soft and warm, so holdable and kissable. She smelled sweet and warm too. A feast for the senses. Her face was in neutral repose and her pink lips were parted slightly with light breaths. He fought the urge to lift her up and hold her to him as he kissed her awake. She was wearing a thin pale yellow shift that afforded him the sight of the swell of her breasts. They were soft mounds compared to the smooth expanse of her stomach. His eyes focused there for a moment and he reached out to place his hand on her stomach over the fabric of her nightwear. Right now, it was flat and smooth, but he couldn't help but picture it another way. He was willing to bet she would be even more stunning pregnant, her body full with his child.

She started to shift and he pulled his hand back, looking up to see her eyes just starting to open as she slowly woke up.

Her eyes came to focus on him and although she didn't look upon him with adoration or anything, there was no instant loathing or annoyance at seeing him. A vast improvement.

He said nothing, waiting for her to set the tone for the day. Would she be pleasant to him, or nasty?

She looked from him to her surroundings, like she suspected she was still dreaming. Maybe she was just hoping she was. Her eyes finally came back to him and he practically held his breath as he waited to see how she would react to him.

"Are you mad at me for last night?" she asked, her tone sleep worn.

Jareth considered her question and let out a sigh. "No, you came awfully close, but you were back inside before nightfall. What were you doing out in the garden, Sarah?" Maybe she would tell him the truth for once.

She looked at his chest rather than his eyes. "I was… just spending time with Toby."

 _Little Jareth_ , he corrected her inwardly. He had to pick his battles right now though…

"Doing what?" he pushed.

She shrugged. "Just looking at plants, walking. I sang to him a little bit."

Jareth couldn't hold back his smile at that. She had sung to his son and he was delighted to know that. Singing to or playing an instrument to someone was considered a great showing of honor or respect or love for that someone among the Fae. It held great symbolism for the members of the Fae. To ask one to sing to you and have them agree was considered an honor, but to have one volunteer it… there was little more to show your ties to that person.

Jareth had sung for his son when he had first come to the Labyrinth, and more times since then. He sang to Sarah too. Two separate occasions while she had run his labyrinth. The first time she had pulled away from him, and the second time she had outright ignored him. Then she had tossed him aside like yesterday's newspaper. It had hurt greatly for her to do such a thing.

"You sang to him?" he repeated, still very pleased that she had.

She nodded her head but seemed to pay no mind to the idea. "Yeah. Just a little."

"Anything else?"

She was silent for a moment, hesitating. "No, nothing else."

Jareth nodded his head once and looked away so she wouldn't see the offense in his eyes. Why did she insist on lying to him? It was maddening.

She sat up next to him, looking out her little window at the brightening sky. "What time is it?"

He shrugged. "I thought you might like to sleep in another hour or so. You seemed so deep in sleep."

She nodded. "I was."

"Did you dream Sarah?"

"I don't even remember," she sighed honestly.

Jareth simply nodded once again. He turned and placed a kiss on her cheek, taking notice that she didn't move away at all. She turned, possibly just to ask him a question, but she never got the chance before his lips met hers. She didn't pull away from him and was unmoving in general as she allowed him the kiss. He didn't want to simply be allowed to kiss her though. He wanted her to kiss him too. He wanted her to respond and to feel like she wanted him even a fraction of the amount that he wanted her.

Jareth reached up and cupped her face in his hand, moving his lips expertly against hers as his other hand sought out her own and he flung her arm around the back of his neck before wrapping his arm around her waist and pulling her up closer against him. She seemed surprised and a little taken aback at first, but the moment his tongue brushed her lips a soft moan escaped her. It had been so soft that he could have easily missed it, but he hadn't and it encouraged him to continue so he slipped his tongue inside her mouth and leaned into her gently so she had no choice but to allow him to lay her back down on the bed. His arm around her waist and hand on her head kept her against him the whole time.

He was already fully aroused as he deepened the kiss, his lips and tongue stroking her in ways that testified to the way he wanted to have her this morning; all sure movements and slow mind-numbingly pleasurable touches that had been honed over centuries of practice. No human male could ever hope to compete with such talents, for with enough time one could become a master at anything they wished. This was just one of Jareth's many interests that he had chosen to take special interests in. And right now, he wanted badly to focus it all on his wife.

He rested his weight on his knees and elbows so he wouldn't be too heavy on top of her smaller form, but he made sure to press his body into her just enough so that she would feel him, and he made sure to press against her just slightly more at key points on her body like her shoulders, chest, and groin. He didn't miss it when her body arched against him out of pure instinct and slipped a knee between hers, opening her legs up to him. He broke away from the kiss, only to wish he hadn't when he saw the way Sarah was looking at him.

Her eyes were wide and full of confused uncertainty. She was barely more than a child, completely new to the pleasures of sex and the ways of her own body in its wake. She was of course confused and frightened by her bodies responses to his touch since she was still too young to know that her body and mind were not as well linked as she assumed they were. In her mind she hated him, but her body knew nothing of her hate, just that the attentions it was receiving felt wonderful. Her nerves were acting accordingly in making her feel pleasure as it forced endorphins to race through her and make her feel some level of enjoyment from it.

Mentally she could hate him all she wanted, but her body was chemically unable to resist him. And in her young mind that was still full of fairy tales she had believed that sex and love went hand in hand; that she would have to love him or at least like him in order to enjoy sex with him. He almost wanted to smile at these fairy tales she clung to like so many others of the human race.

He hoped very much to use her naivety to his advantage though. Perhaps if she continued to think that sex and love were two sides to the same coin then maybe she would come to see the pleasure she took from him as a sign that she loved him, or at least liked him on some level or another.

Jareth moved his lips to her neck, not wanting to meet her eyes that threatened to reject him at any moment. He placed a kiss against the base before grazing it lightly with his sharp teeth, drawing a hiss of air from her that caused him to smirk against her warm smooth skin before biting down just a bit and causing her to gasp as her body lurched under him.

Jareth ran his tongue over the skin he had just abused and placed a kiss there when she shuddered under from the sensation, her breath coming out a little quicker now between her lust and fright.

Jareth nuzzled her collar bone and pushed his hips against her so she would spread her legs wider, allowing him to rest between them and right against her as he took her hands in his and held them gently on either side of her body. He wasn't restraining her, but mostly just because she wasn't pulling away from him yet. He ran his thumbs lightly over her palms as his lips sought out her breast through the thin fabric of her nightgown. He sucked till he could feel her nipple through the now warm and wet spot of the fabric, then ran his tongue over it roughly till she moaned again for him, her head falling back against the mattress.

He wished they were in his bed rather than hers. He liked having the mirror overhead and knowing that she was watching him as he pleasured her, that she was becoming more aroused at the sight of him doing so. He knew it turned her on because it did the same to him to an intense level to watch her pleasuring him as it happened. He couldn't deny, however, that he liked the idea that if she slept here tonight she would smell him and remember what they had done. Maybe she would even dream of it.

He grinned against her despite himself and moved back up her body to seek out her lips once more before he undid his robe, not even bothering to remove it as he lifted her nightgown up to her hips and pushed into her in one easy stroke.

He groaned loudly when he entered her without hardly any resistance and she arched against him, a small noise escaping her. Jareth found himself frowning after just a couple seconds inside her though.

She felt very warm around him, and very wet.

Very.

Wetter than what was usual for her when she was aroused.

Despite not wanting to, Jareth pulled back from her to see why there was a difference. Sarah looked confused before, but now she was absolutely dumb-founded as he pulled away from and out of her without any explanation at all. She returned his perplexed frown and lifted her nightgown up further to also investigate why he had stopped. That was when Jareth saw the blood.

She had started her period.

His seed had failed to take and there would be no baby to show for his efforts thus far. Sarah cursed at the mess and quickly scrambled out of bed, clumsily moving around him in her haste as she hurried to the bathroom. Jareth staid where he was a moment longer after she was out of sight. He would need to get the proper equipment for her to take care of this with before the day was out. In the meantime, he would probably ask that one of his cousins provide her with some of their own things. He couldn't help but feel heavy with disappointment as he got up from the bed to see to Sarah. The chances of a pregnancy in the first month was a bit to hope for, but he had still hoped against hope…


	14. Chapter 14

Beta gor this chapter is The Art of Suicide

X

Jareth felt like he would never again be without headaches as he was escorted by Mavid to the throne room. After all the disappointments he'd had to deal with in the last few days alone…

Sometimes he just wanted to slink away and find a place to hide and just sit there by himself for as long as he wanted; no distractions, no duties, no problems… nothing but himself. People could complain about jobs all they wanted, but being a king was not a job. It wasn't even a duty really. It was a life and no easier to stop or take a break from than any other profession. Days off, vacations… forget it. Jareth was lucky if he could take a day completely for himself once every other year or so.

Today was one of those days where he could have really used some alone time. After what had happened with Sarah this morning, starting her monthly and all…

After Jareth had finally convinced her to allow him into the bathroom that she had locked herself in out of embarrassment- something that had taken a bit more begging than he was accustomed to- before he had finally ordered her to let him in. He had listened to her panic over the fact that she had no toiletries here and about how she didn't know what to do because of it.

Back in his younger days, Jareth would have been squeamish about the whole topic, but after centuries of being around enough women and even marrying a few, he had learned like most all males do to take such things in stride. He had first cleaned himself up, then ordered Sarah to wait in the bathroom for him- something she had readily agreed to since she had had no plans of leaving- while he had dressed and gone to find his cousins' rooms. He could have sent Clora, or both females to her aid, but had opted to simply ask Ishapell since her door happened to be closer and he wouldn't have objected to Sarah being on better terms with that cousin. He knew from dinners and the obvious tension between them that Sarah still held no liking for the female, far favoring the company of Clora or even Tallia.

He wanted her to favor Ishapell more because there were many qualities about his blonde cousin that Sarah would do better to follow than to keep up her friendship with Clora, who was much like Sarah was before she had run his labyrinth, if not worse. Ishapell, for example, was more mature and held poise from a strict life under the rule of her family on his father's side. Sarah was childish and clumsy to the utmost sense of the words. That was just one example.

She would probably whine to him about this too later. Rather than going back to their room he had simply sent Ishapell there and then gone to his study, burying himself in his work.

The goblins were going to start up one of their knitting tournaments soon and that was always a headache to clean up. Knitting was one of the most dangerous sports amongst the goblins. What had started off as goblins trying to work together in pairs to knit fabric had turned into them deciding that they needed much larger knitting needles. They'd taken to charging at each other with these spear-like "knitting needles". Eventually, it just turned into goblins taking long spears and blades and trying to cut each other up. The name "knitting tournaments" had remained.

Jareth didn't particularly like the fact that a few of his goblins liked to chop each other up, but it's not like it wasn't already a daily occurrence for several to end up injured in the most foolish and brutal of ways anyway. They were by far the sturdiest creatures he had ever encountered. If they didn't outright die then they tended to simply bounce back from their injuries no matter how fatal the damage would have been to a more fragile being. Death to a goblin was seen with as much horror and sadness as someone laying down to take a nap. Besides, goblins were impervious to grief.

But then Mavid had found him in his study, and of all the bad news the male could have possibly brought him…

Jareth scowled and rubbed the bridge of his nose between his fingers, tired from the day already and they hadn't even had lunch yet. Jareth was still finding it slightly difficult to get around because of his sprain, so he leaned on Mavid as they went, using him as a crutch. He had been glad to find earlier this morning that the bruises around his torso were gone and bandages were no longer a necessity. Mavid stopped in front of the grand throne room doors and Jareth allowed him to leave his side so he could prop the heavy wood aside. Jareth would be on his own from here on out. He refused to show any weakness in front of another ruler, least of all his meddling father. Mavid took hold of the handle and glanced back at Jareth, giving him a moment to prepare himself before opening the doors and stepping back out of his way for him.

Jareth's scowl only deepened when his eyes landed on his father; scrutinizing his throne room and inspecting every stain and crack he came across. There were plenty to find. His father was meticulous when it came to mess and kept his own properties immaculate. He rarely ever came to the Castle Beyond the Goblin City because the disarray disgusted him and the only way for him to reach it was to fly in his bird form. He found that in particular to be somewhat beneath him. Lastly, Jareth wasn't ever likely to roll out the welcome mat for him. So, it had been most surprising when Mavid had found him and told him that his father was paying an unexpected visit.

It wasn't that they didn't get along. In fact, Jareth and his father were normally on much better terms with each other. Jareth had looked up to his father a lot while growing up. Since Sarah though… Jareth was very edgy toward his father on his opinions of Jareth's new wife.

To say the least.

King Hamold turned at the sound of the doors opening and looked back at his son, one eyebrow raised up haughtily. "There you are, son. I hope I didn't come at a bad time," he drawled out, obviously not caring much if he had.

Mavid exchanged looks with Jareth and both males inwardly groaned as he turned back to his father. "This is certainly unexpected."

Hamold waltzed over and took a seat on Jareth's throne, casting his son a less than friendly look. "I was wondering how things were with my grandson."

Jareth tried to hide his anger at the way his father took HIS throne. He was sure his father probably knew already anyway. Despite the pain and discomfort, Jareth moved into the room on his own, ignoring his ankle as he forced himself to keep from limping.

"He is perfectly fine," Jareth insisted. He schooled his features, replacing it with a stone mask that had taken many years to master. He was sure his father had ulterior motives that had little to do with his son. Not that Hamold wasn't interested in his only grandchild, but there were more interesting events unfolding at the moment.

"Good, because your mother mentioned to me today that she would have expected you both to visit her again sooner than this and that she hoped nothing was wrong." Hamold raised a brow at his son. "And you know how your mother's 'mentions' go."

Jareth managed not to grimace but he very much remembered. First, she would ask for something. If she didn't get it she would mention it, then she would maybe mention it once more or she would go ahead and lay on the guilt with something like 'I only thought it would be nice, but I don't want you to go to any trouble for me' or 'I don't really expect too much, do I?' -lines that worked on him and his father every time. If things didn't go her way, then she would pull out the big spells and cause chaos. Jareth had only seen her do this with his father once or twice. The male was a fierce ruler and stunningly powerful fae, but when it came to the queen…

Jareth let out a small sigh under his breath, feeling just the slightest bit closer to his father now. Short of her freedom of him, there was hardly anything he would refuse Sarah if she asked it of him. He knew that she tended to always delight in gifts, spoiled as she was. She appeared not to care what the gift was so much as that it was coming from someone who cared about her. Whether it was a bobble of a birthday present or a poisoned peach seemed to matter not. Except, of course, when it came to his gifts. He would give her fine clothes, jewels, a castle, a kingdom to be a queen over, things that any girl who had ever dreamed of being a princess would have wept over in joy. All she did was cry in sorrow.

"Jareth," his father snapped, rousing him from his thoughts. Jareth kept the embarrassment off his face but inwardly cursed himself for allowing his wife to once more distract him. "I expect you and our grandson to visit with us either tomorrow or the day after. No later or I will be forced to drag you back there myself and don't for one instant think that you are too much your own ruler for me to do so," the male warned.

Despite the years of careful practice, the frown still slipped through to Jareth's face at that. His mother had her lines, but his father had his own as well. One of the male's favorites to use on Jareth growing up had been "No matter how old or powerful you grow you are still my son and I am your father and you will not forget that." Even though the male hadn't said it out loud, Jareth could still hear it hanging in the air around them.

After a long pause, Jareth nodded his head in submissive understanding.

"Your mother also requested that you bring along your new wife so that she may meet with her before the council does."

Jareth's head snapped up to his fathers, ready to argue, but he already had a hand up ready to silence Jareth before he could start. "I have already told her no and will deal with the repercussions for that one."

Jareth kept himself from reacting at all lest he give away anything on just how much progress or lack thereof he was making with his wife. As usual, Mavid stood behind him closer to the wall doing as all good servants do in situations like this between their masters; pretending he didn't exist.

Hamold leaned forward in Jareth's throne and brought the tips of his fingers together over his lap. "Just how is your wife coming along with her etiquette lessons?"

Jareth could feel a slight heat creeping into his cheeks.

"Don't bother answering that, son. I already know that you have not found her a tutor yet. I think it only fair to warn you I have contacted Rally myself and asked her to come out here for some emergency training. Although I don't particularly wish that you keep this girl as a wife, I won't allow you to let her embarrass this family in front of the council. If she offends your mother I warn you now it will be you who suffers the consequences. Rally will arrive here by tomorrow morning."

Jareth was seething with anger. How many times was his father going to go behind his back in matters of his own marriage?! And to recruit Rally like that?

As much as Jareth wanted to shout and howl at his father… he couldn't. Truly he should have been working harder to find Sarah a proper tutor before now. With less than a week to get her ready… Rally was probably the last choice he had. Besides, she had been allotted time to weep and grieve over her family and past life in the Aboveground. It was time for her to accept her place as Queen of the Labyrinth, wife to him, and mother to his son. Enough time had been wasted.

Jareth nodded his head slowly in agreement. "Very well, father." Truly time was the ficklest of any element. To have forever at your fingertips, and yet no time at all… how maddening.

"I also think it fair to warn you that I will be back here tonight for supper."

Jareth's head shot up at that and he couldn't keep all the shock from his face. "S-supper?"

Hamold pushed himself up from his seat and straightened out his immaculate robes. "Of course. I wish to meet this girl you claim good enough to be your bride before anyone else and it would be good to see what progress you have made with her thus far before Rally arrives."

"This is… rather short notice-"

"You can cope I'm sure. It's not up for debate."

Jareth would have been enraged if he weren't so terrified at the prospect of his father seeing Sarah's eating habits, seeing just how unladylike she still was. What if she cursed?!

Hamold made his way to leave and out of habit Jareth dipped his head to the king, but his mind was far from the action itself. At lunch, he would have no choice. He would try to drill in as many manners as possible into Sarah before supper tonight. Using the right utensils would just be the beginning. He would have to also make her watch her temper and her mouth, both of which seemed to always get the better of her. Hamold wasn't nearly so forgiving as he was. No doubt at some point his father would try to test her in some way as well.

Hamold glanced over at his son from the window as he seated himself on the side. "You don't still have goblins cooking your meals, do you?"

Mavid was the one to speak up. "We were able to hire on some brownies for our kitchens, your majesty."

Hamold nodded in acceptance of this. Jareth and Mavid both watched as the male flipped over the side of the ledge out the window and disappeared, only to reappear seconds later flying off in his hawk form.

The evening did not promise to be a pleasant one.

With his father finally gone Jareth let out the groan he had been holding in for what felt like an eternity and buried his face in his hands. The groan evolved into something between a snarl and a scream. He really wanted to hit something right now.

Mavid came forward till he was standing next to Jareth. He waited patiently for Jareth to collect himself and look up before speaking. "I'm afraid I have more good news for you regarding your wife."

Jareth rolled his eyes. He had almost forgotten about Mavid trailing her through the garden last night. He turned to face his friend, "What did you find out?"

X

Sarah felt like she would never again be without headaches as she came out of the bathroom. After all the disappointments she had had to deal with in the last few days alone…

Sometimes she just wanted to slink away and find a place to hide and just sit there by herself for as long as she wanted. No distractions, no duties, no problems… nothing but herself.

Last night she had gone out into the garden, had been very nice to Jareth to be allowed to do so. She had looked all over for the worm. He had said he would be there. She had failed to find him at all though and before she knew it the sky had grown dark. She didn't want Jareth to take away her garden privileges again so she had hurried inside. She wasn't giving up. She felt just about crushed by the utter disappointment of not being able to meet with the worm again and discuss an escape, but she wasn't giving up. The worm seemed truly sympathetic to her situation and like he genuinely wanted to help her. She wasn't sure why he had failed to show, but she wouldn't easily give up on her only way out of the Underground. She would try again tonight.

In the meantime, that would mean she would have to keep acting civil toward Jareth.

There had to be a reason the worm hadn't shown up. Still, the disappointment left her feeling low. She wouldn't have complained if she were to be left alone all day. With how she felt she would have welcomed some peace.

Instead, she had Ishapell to keep her company. She'd expected Jareth to come back but had instead been mortified and upset when the tall blonde knocked on the bathroom door and informed her that Jareth had sent her with supplies for Sarah. As much as she wanted to, Sarah couldn't send the female away in her moment of need and so she'd had to rely on the female's help for what was a very private, exposed, and embarrassing moment for her. She was just thankful that Ishapell had been rather kind about it, helping without any judgment or opinion and then leaving Sarah in peace to take care of herself. Sarah knew from her time in the Aboveground that it was an unspoken code that when another female is in trouble that you help supply them with what they need if you are at all able to no matter if they were a friend, stranger, or enemy. She was at least thankful to see that apparently, that code existed down here too.

Once she was put to rights, Sarah readjusted her nightgown and left the bathroom, only mildly surprised to see Ishapell waiting for her just outside the door. She supposed that even though she didn't like Ishapell she should thank her for the help. She lifted her chin a bit but couldn't bring herself to meet the female's eyes. "Um, thank you."

Ishapell nodded her head. "Your majesty is welcome."

Sarah turned and headed past her through to her own room, knowing that Ishapell would be sure to follow. Sarah went over to her bed, meaning to lay down on it and try to go back to sleep despite Ishapell, hoping that if she ignored the female maybe she would leave. When she got to the bed though she could only look down at it and remember what had happened there.

This morning had been the first time Jareth had gone after her in her own bed and she had liked it despite herself. Up until they found out she'd begun her period he had been gentle and loving towards her. She had liked the feel of it too. He was obviously very skilled. She wished he wasn't. If he didn't know what he was doing it would make it easier to remain cold and frigid to him in bed, something that was only made more difficult since the only affection she got from anyone was Jareth.

She was used to being told at least once a day that she was loved and her father had been sure to give her a hug every morning before they both left for school and work, respectively. At school, she'd had friends to laugh and have fun with and exchange jokes. There was a limitless supply of kisses from Merlin, of course. She couldn't remember the last time she had been told 'I love you'. Sure, she had Toby, but he was still just a babe and he couldn't really show affection on the scale she needed. She was practically starved for the need to feel loved and wanted.

She hated that Jareth was the only source of affection she had. It played with her emotions and her mind.

"Miss, would you care to wear this today?" Ishapell asked. Sarah turned to see the female had already pulled a dress from the closet for her. It was a very light blue color with white trim and large diamonds sewn in across the bust line.

Sarah simply nodded her head since she couldn't wear what she really wanted to anyway; jeans, a baggy T-shirt, and her comfortable loafers. No doubt Jareth had probably had them destroyed when she first arrived here. She suspected she probably wouldn't have been able to get back to sleep anyway. "Where is Clora?" she asked, trying not to let it sound too much like she would have preferred Clora's help to Ishapell's. It went without saying though.

Ishapell shrugged. "Probably sleeping still since I did not get a chance to wake her before coming to help you, Miss." Sarah didn't miss the slight tone of envy that Ishapell said this with. The female probably liked being the one chosen to help her as much as she did. She would flog Jareth when she next saw him.

Sarah allowed Ishapell to help her get dressed. She was becoming more used to the daily routine of having her body pulled, pinched and cinched up so tightly it took on shapes that were hardly its own before being decorated like a cake. She might have been more accepting of this if only she could wear her own comfortable clothes. She used to think that dressing up consisted of wearing a skirt of some sort or a dress and putting on lipstick and maybe some eye shadow… how wrong she was.

When the dress was on and secure Ishapell helped Sarah into her shoes and then jewelry and started on her hair, neither woman saying a word to each other up till the point when Sarah asked if they could just leave it down.

"It's not proper for a lady's hair to be down outside of her bedroom, Miss."

God, she was sick of that! Being told what was and wasn't proper and being called Miss. It grated on her like no other and she moved out of Ishapell's reach before the female could start to pin her hair up. She wanted to just cut it all off! At least then Jareth wouldn't pull on it or play with it like he did. He seemed to absolutely love the stuff. Right now, she found herself hating her hair.

"Miss-"

"If you call me Miss one more time right now I am going to lose it!" Sarah snapped at Ishapell, who blanched but had the good sense to remain silent, staring at Sarah first like she was some creature that had just risen out of the floor, but then seeming almost bored and unsurprised a second later as she shrugged her shoulders.

"Well, I suppose if you don't come across as a lady it's nothing to shock anyone anymore."

Sarah wasn't even taken aback by the female's cutting remark, she had just about grown used to them. However, she'd had enough of them. "What is your problem?!" Sarah demanded of the female.

Ishapell raised one superior eyebrow to Sarah in much the same fashion as everyone else around here seemed to. "Problem?"

"Yeah, you have been nothing but clipped with me since you met me and I want to know why. I get that you are here because Jareth wants you to help me learn what is proper but do you have to be so… so… bitchy about it? You seem to go out of your way to make me feel like an idiot. You are always correcting me every chance you get in just about the nastiest way you can." Sarah could feel the heat on her face and knew she was worked up now, angry as all get out and ready to keep going on with her list of done-me-wrongs to the pious female in front of her. "I can admit that I'm not very popular around here, but maybe if you stopped acting like a self-righteous viperous bitch you might be able to find one person around this castle that can stand to be in your company for more than two minutes. I mean I don't think there is anyone here who likes you more than to just tolerate you. It wouldn't kill you to be nice to others once in a while."

She felt better for having gotten that much out.

She watched as Ishapell started to shake all over in her anger, her lips no more than a slash across her face as she fought to hang onto whatever composure she had left. Sarah braced herself for one of the females cutting remarks, or even for her to run to Jareth and complain to him about what she had said… she had cursed after all.

Ishapell went over to the door at a quick pace and hurried out of it, but not before Sarah heard the distinct sound of crying.

 _Oh great!_ Sarah stood in her room for a minute, fighting with herself over what to do. She hadn't meant to make the female cry. And she supposed she had started it, picking a fight with the female while she had just been doing her job and trying to get Sarah ready and dressed.

And after she had helped her out this morning...

Sarah hurried out the door after the female, unsure of where she would go since she didn't even know where the female's room was. It turned out she didn't have to go far though, finding Ishapell right outside the hall on the steps, sitting on them with her face buried in a lace hanky as her body continued to shake with her tears. Because of how she acted all the time, so cold and cut off from everything around her, Sarah had doubted at times that the female had even had feelings. Which was probably why it hadn't even occurred to Sarah that saying such things to her would hurt them. Ishapell certainly seemed to have hurt feelings right now. She refused to pull her face out of her hanky as she sat on the stairs and wept.

Sarah couldn't help but feel ashamed of herself. She had been raised better than this. She moved a bit closer to the female, stopping at the top of the steps. "I… Ishapell I-

"Please l-leave me be f-f-for a moment-t," she managed to sob out.

Sarah couldn't just leave her on the stairs like this. Despite the female's plea, she took a seat on the stairs next to the blonde woman, trying to think of just what to say to try to make it better. "Ishapell… I'm sorry I said that to you. I was wrong to say those things to you."

Ishapell sniffed into her handkerchief. "That doesn't mean you didn't mean them, or that you are necessarily wrong," she wiped at her face and under her eyes before turning back to Sarah. Her face was red but other than that she looked just as well put together as ever. "You can't have had it easy, being brought here to a new place against your will and married to a man you don't seem to entirely like."

 _If that wasn't an understatement…_

"But with all due respect, you are not the only one in a position you don't want to be in. Do you think that I want to be here in this dirty castle surrounded by gross goblins any more than you do? At least you are being waited on. I must act as a servant… and to a human! Not that I hold that against you, you can't help what you were born as."

 _Well of all the-_

Ishapell patted her eyes again before turning back to Sarah. "My father is a respected lord, powerful and rich and related to the Fae King, Jareth's father. One day I'm in the library playing with my beloved Tarik, and the next moment I am told to pack my things and leave Tarik behind so I can come here and play nursemaid for my cousin."

Sarah frowned at that. "Actually, Tallia came here to play nursemaid. You're playing the babysitter," she said bitterly.

Ishapell looked down at the stairs in front of her. "I didn't mean it like that," she said meekly, clasping her hands together in her lap.

There was a long pause after that as they both fished for what to say next.

"If it makes you feel better, I did ask Jareth to send you back," Sarah admitted.

Ishapell simply shrugged. "Truthfully, I'm not sure that it does. My family would be very upset if they thought I had let down such an important ruler. Everyone expects him to one day take on the throne to the Fae court so it is not wise to curry disfavor with him."

Ishapell rested her chin on her hand again but not to cry this time, though Sarah did notice the female start to tear up again before she promptly dabbed at her eyes. "Besides," she continued, her voice a bit more strained, "You are probably right about others not being able to like me. I think the only one who really loves me outside of my family is my Tarik. I think I miss him more than anything else from my home, he was so cute… especially when he was being given a bath." She smiled a little smile at a memory and Sarah could hardly picture Ishapell with a pet, but she felt the same in the way that she missed Merlin.

Ishapell's face was a little less red when she looked back at Sarah. "He wasn't too fond of water so the servants that bathed him would usually get soaked by the time it was over. I think he secretly just liked splashing them so they would know how he felt about it."

Sarah couldn't help but smile a little at the memories that brought up for her. "Yeah, Merlin hated the water too."

"Merlin?"

"My dog back home. Karen - er Carrie, used to try to make me leave him outside when it rained, but if she ever left while it still was I would let him into the house just to spite her."

Genuine shock and a polite measure of outrage formed on Ishapell's face. "How cruel to leave him out in the rain like that!"

Sarah laughed but appreciated the concern from the female. She turned somber again. "I didn't really mean what I said, about you being a bitch."

"Actually, you said self-righteous viperous bitch, and you did mean it." Her tone wasn't angry at all, just factual. She looked back over at Sarah. "You're right, however, that I haven't been entirely nice to you. Truthfully, I resent acting like a maid to you. Back at my home, I had my own maids after all."

Sarah shrugged at that. "Well, you don't have to look at it as being my maid. If you were a little nicer to me you could be like Clora and just help me out as my friend. I've never had servants before in my life and I don't really want them. I am capable on my own to take care of myself… aside from getting dressed anymore." She fiddled with the skirts of the dress she wore.

Ishapell smiled slightly at that.

Sarah turned back to her. "I am sorry I said it though, regardless."

Ishapell nodded in appreciation. "I am sorry too, for acting so beastly to you over a situation you can't even help and all." She met Sarah's eyes then and a real smile came to her lips, probably the first thing that was close to an actual expression that Sarah had ever actually seen on her face. "You are very kind for a human, and even more so for a queen."

In her odd way, Sarah was sure she was giving her a good compliment.

Both females looked up from their conversation when they heard heavy footsteps heading towards them up the stairs, both rising to their feet. Ishapell dabbed at her face once more for good measure before putting her hanky away.

Sarah was surprised when Jareth and Mavid both came into view, both looking solemn and determined as they headed up. Jareth's eyes found Sarah first and raked over her, his eyes alone accusing as he approached. It made her tense and she made herself stand her ground. She wasn't sure what she would have to run for but this was certainly not normal behavior. Ishapell dropped into a low and nervous curtsy as they reached them and Mavid bowed his head to Sarah. Jareth gave her another look that made it obvious he was none too happy before he turned to Ishapell. "You may go and tell Clora that you both are to look your best for supper tonight. My father will be dining with us. I will send for you both later to help Sarah change."

Ishapell and Sarah both looked as shocked as they felt. Sarah couldn't believe it. His father was going to be at supper tonight. The king of the fae court according to Ishapell and he was going to be here. She had only ever seen the male once and at the time she had been sitting on the floor with nothing but a tablecloth for God sakes!

Ishapell nodded and with a final curtsy hurried past Jareth and Mavid and down the stairs and out of sight.

Sarah turned to Jareth, wanting explanations. "What-"

Jareth reached out and gripped her wrist, a bit harder than what was necessary before turning and pulling her along with him back down the stairs. "Come with me."

"Where are we going?" she demanded as he pulled her along behind him past Mavid at a brisk pace that in her shoes she could barely keep up with.

"We're going to have lunch together."

X

Jareth had been outraged to find out from Mavid that Sarah had been looking for someone in the garden. He could guess who. When Carrie had escaped, it had been because that wretched worm friend of hers had shown her how. Jareth had searched for him since then but had been unsuccessful in locating him. There were billions upon billions of places for someone to hide in the Labyrinth, especially when they knew how to navigate it. The worm had earned his title of the Path Master long before Jareth had taken control of the kingdom. There were few creatures in the Labyrinth older than Jareth, but they were there none the less.

Apparently, the worm was tired of life. He seemed to think it was a good idea to cross him once more. When he found that dirty little bug he was going to crush it under his boot. He would allow Sarah to continue to go outside but would keep her under watch. No doubt the worm hadn't shown up last time because it knew of Mavid from when it had been a friend of Carrie's. He would just have to have Mavid be more careful to not be seen in the future. Sarah would be the one to show them right where the worm was.

In the meantime, Jareth could only hope that she would change her mind about betraying him. If she tried to go through with an escape plan he would deal with her. And if she tried to take his son with her… well, he wouldn't allow himself to think of that or else he'd lash out at her now just from the thought.

He had other more pressing matters on his mind… like preparing her as much as he could for tonight. The more she learned from him today the less she would be forced to learn from Rally tomorrow. That would be best for everyone.

For lunch, he'd asked the cook to prepare a meal and to bring it to them in the library so Sarah could practice in peace. She sat across from him at the little study table, a complete set up of dinnerware set up in front of her. Three forks, two spoons, two knives, two wine flutes and a water glass, a bowl on top of a serving plate, a smaller plate and napkin. The bare basics as far as dining was concerned.

Sarah looked down at it all with a look of shallow horror on her face as both he and Mavid explained to her what everything was for, when she could use it, and how. Then they had both tried to quickly go over other table etiquette tips. She kept utterly quiet, not interrupting in any way as she stared down at her utensils. Jareth had the same set up in front of him. Mavid stood next to the food cart the brownie had left for them to use, a towel draped over his left shoulder in case anything was spilled.

"Do you have any questions?" Jareth asked her.

Sarah stared down at the stuff in front of her before looking back up at him. "What are the forks for again?"

Mavid and Jareth let out identical sighs as Jareth reached over the table and lifted each fork in turn. "Salad. Dinner. Dessert. Just remember to eat towards the center and you'll be fine." She nodded her head but uncertainty was still deep on her face.

"And why do I have to learn this all again?"

"Because it is necessary for a queen to know this."

"Necessary?"

"Yes."

"How is it necessary?"

"Because you should know proper table manners."

"Or else I'm not fit to be Queen of the _Goblins_?" she asked skeptically. "Because I swear I saw one eating dung once just so you know."

"Sarah!" Jareth bellowed.

She sat back in her seat and shut her mouth right away, knowing not to press it any further than she already had.

"You also need to know this because we are eating with my father tonight."

"That makes the difference?"

Jareth glared at her again from across the table. "Yes, because if you embarrass me tonight I guarantee you will regret it. Do I make myself clear?"

She stared down at her plate rather than meeting his eyes as her face turned red. He wasn't sure if it was out of embarrassment or anger but he didn't really care. He needed her to behave herself as much as she possibly could tonight. For her own sake if nothing else.

Jareth reached past the dinnerware and took her hand that had been sitting on the table in his. She looked up and met his eyes, they were full of worry and concentration. "Sarah, relax. This is only practice for tonight. Mavid and I will correct any mistakes you make and you'll be sure to make a few of them since this is your first time eating properly. Just try to remember as much as you can for tonight.

Sarah nodded her head weakly. "Why is your father dining with us tonight anyway?"

Jareth hesitated on that. If he told her it was to observe her then she would be just that much more nervous. What else could he tell her though? "To see Tob- er Little Jareth." Inwardly he cursed himself for that slip. Damn her.

There was the slightest bit of amusement in Sarah's green eyes, taking a lot of the stress from her face. Obviously, she had not missed it like he would have hoped she would.

Mavid took the cart over to them and moved to Jareth's right side to serve the food, first ladling out the soup. Jareth took his napkin and unfolded it meticulously before setting it down on his lap.

Sarah followed suit, picking her napkin up from the table. But then for some unknown reason, she snapped it in the air next to her to shake it out, causing both Mavid and Jareth to still instantly at the odd act. She noticed their stunned looks and frowned in confusion as to what she had done wrong already. "What?"

Jareth caught Mavid's smirk of amusement out of the corner of his eye and shot the male a glare before turning back to her. "Unfold your napkin, Sarah. Never wave it around like you are trying to swat flies. And remember to only take your napkin after the highest-ranking member at the table takes theirs. If nothing else make sure you don't touch yours till I do."

Sarah nodded as her cheeks colored just the slightest bit in embarrassment. She placed her napkin in her lap as Mavid moved around to serve her, pouring some soup into her bowl. She looked over at her spoons in wonder, obviously trying to remember which to pick up and use. Jareth noticed her eyes dart to him and watched as he picked up the one furthest from his plate. She picked up her own then. Certainly, she was a resourceful girl. If copying and taking cues from those around her were the only ways she was going to pull off this dinner than that was fine, just as long as she successfully faked her way through he didn't care if she followed his every move.

Jareth brought his spoon to his lips and sipped from the side, careful not to make a noise as he did so.

Sarah brought hers to her lips and blew on it.

"Never blow on your food," Mavid nudged gently from where he stood next to her. "If it is too hot wait till it is cool before eating and make sure your left hand is at rest on your lap unless you are using it."

Sarah moved her hand from the table edge to her lap. Frowning in slight frustration before placing her spoon inside her mouth.

"Do not put your spoon in your mouth," Jareth chided her, "Sip from the side."

Sarah let out a frustrated growl but took another spoonful of soup. Jareth said nothing about the fact that she had simply scraped the top rather than moving it away from her till it was about two-thirds of the way full as was proper. Sarah brought it to her lips and hesitated like she was fighting the urge to blow on it. She resisted it though and brought the side of her spoon to her lips.

With a satisfied smirk, Jareth went back to his own soup, only to stop instantly as his head snapped up at the sound of a loud and obnoxious slurping noise. "Sarah!" he snapped.

She let out another louder growl and practically dropped her spoon into her soup, causing it to slop over the sides onto the table. "This is impossible!" she wailed.

It was certainly starting to seem that way. Jareth pinched his nose between his thumb and forefinger as his headache started to pound once more. This was going to be one very long meal tonight.

X

Sarah didn't see why she had to change her attire again just for supper. The blue dress she had been wearing was probably worth a fortune alone. Jareth had insisted though and right now she was too exhausted from lunch and her brain was overflowing as she was trying hard not to forget all she had been told.

 _Do NOT talk with food in your mouth! Always taste your food before seasoning it. It is very rude to add salt and pepper before tasting the food. Don't blow on your food to cool it off. Always scoop food, using the proper utensil, away from you. Cut only enough food for the next mouthful. Eat in small bites and slowly. Do eat a little of everything on your plate. If you do not like the food and feel unable to give a compliment, just keep silent. Never wave or point silverware. Do not hold food on the fork or spoon while talking, nor wave your silverware in the air or point with it. Try to pace your eating so that you don't finish before others are halfway through. Once used, your utensils, including the handles, must not touch the table again. Always rest forks, knives, and spoons on the side of your plate or in the bowl. Keep elbows off the table. Keep your left hand in your lap unless you are using it. Chew with your mouth closed. Don't clean up spills with your own napkin and don't touch items that have dropped on the floor. To signal that you are done with the course, rest your fork, tines up, and knife blade in, with the handles resting at five o'clock and tips pointing to ten o'clock on your plate…_ or was it six o'clock pointing at eleven?

Sarah would have buried her head in her hands if Clora wasn't at that moment painting her lips.

Ishapell and Clora both always dressed to the utmost, but today they were more fluffed, primped, and polished than ever. Clora always wore tight dresses and today was no exception, hugging her every curve from cleavage to the floor. From her knees to the floor it fanned out in large ruffles piled on top of one another. The fabric was decorated in swirls of colors in purples and greens and teals. She wore jewelry made of painted feathers on her wrists, around her neck, and in her hair. Her face wasn't so much made up as it was painted up, a sheen of glitter over all her exposed skin. It was rather peacock looking.

Ishapell had her hair piled up high on her head in what was just about a bee-hive style except done in a lavishly stylish way. Simple rubies hung from her ears and around her wrist, but her neck was left bare and for the first time she wasn't wearing a dress that covered her entire body. Her dress was rather low cut, revealing lots of pale creamy skin. Her arms were covered from wrist to shoulders by long white gloves and her dress was snowy in color with full skirts and a deep red sash tied around her waist that emphasized her slim waist. Like Clora, her face was more a piece of artwork than just made up.

Sarah closed her eyes as they fussed over her and tried to concentrate. She didn't want to make a fool out of herself any more than Jareth did.

"I'm not going to be able to do this," she sighed after Clora had moved the lip paint away from her lips. "There are too many rules to remember. I can't even remember where the salad spoon is located."

Clora paused at that. "Sarah there is no salad spoon. Do you mean fork?"

Sarah slapped her face down into her hands.

"Hey, I just got done with that!" Clora squealed as she pulled Sarah's hands gently away from her face and looked her over for any smears.

Ishapell put and hand on Sarah's shoulder for comfort. "You will be fine. Just remember that the salad fork will be the furthest one from your plate and if you get into trouble just look and see what we are doing and say no more than you absolutely have to."

Sarah let out a sigh and nodded her head. Clora watched this with a perplexed expression on her face, knowing she missed something at some point.

"Okay, take a look," Ishapell smiled, stepping out of the way of the mirror.

Despite the absurdity of the efforts put into the process, she could hardly deny that the person in the mirror looking back at her was stunning… and royal. She had to take a minute and move slightly just to make sure she was staring at herself. Her long dark hair was done up in large curls and pulled up high onto her head, save for a few curls left to hang down in a way that somewhat reminded her of Jareth's hair. Her eyes were brought out by the light green and gold glitter and shadow that was done artistically around her brows and eyes. Her dress was so elegant, large enough to make her look petite and fragile yet still bringing out the shape of her body, her cleavage pushed up beneath the square neckline of the gold dress wrapped in deep green fabrics to give it volume and pattern. Jewels of amber and emerald decorated her throat in a gold framed choker that hugged her throat and fanned out down her chest to brush just the tops of her breasts. A couple gold leaves decorated the curls of her hair.

She looked like one of the fairy queens from her books.

Spectacular.

"Well don't just stand there staring, we can't be late," Clora grinned at her reflection.

"We have another fifteen minutes before dinner, don't we?"

"It is polite to arrive at least ten minutes before dinner begins, Mi- Sarah," Ishapell said.

Sarah let out a long sigh and turned away from the mirror.

"Now when we reach the dining room remember to give the proper greetings to King Jareth and King Hamold," Ishapell instructed, much more gently than she normally did, so Sarah tried to pay close attention as the female stepped in front of her. "Let's pretend I'm Jareth and Clora is Hamold." Ishapell straightened up a bit more and bowed to Sarah, holding out her hand with her palm up. "Good evening, my queen. I hope you had a pleasant day."

Sarah couldn't help but smile a little at the impression, especially since Ishapell was trying to speak in a much lower voice. Sarah reached out and placed her hand in the female's, curtsying. "I don't know if I would classify it as pleasant but I have had worse ones down here."

Ishapell looked up at her, afraid as if Sarah would actually say that.

"I'm not serious," Sarah smiled in rare mirth, "I'll say something like 'It was fair and I hope you found yours enjoyable'."

Ishapell nodded her head and pulled herself out of her bow, using Sarah's hand to turn her to face Clora -er Hamold. "May I present you to King Hamold of the fae court, my father."

Sarah looked over at Ishapell in search of instruction on what she should do when Clora didn't move at all.

"He will not bow to either you or Jareth since he is higher in rank than you both. So, you will simply curtsey to him and say something like 'it is an absolute pleasure to be able to meet you, King Hamold'.

Sarah rolled her eyes but nodded anyway. So, all they expected her to do was lie and fake her way through this meal? She could do that surely.

"Let's go then," Clora sighed, checking her flawless makeup once more in Sarah's mirror before taking her place next to Sarah. Ishapell fell in line behind them both, and Sarah led them out of the walk-in closet and towards the dining hall.

X

Jareth felt rather nervous as he sat at the head of the table, his father seated on his right side. He wasn't nervous at all about eating with his father, having grown up eating countless meals with him, but he was nervous to have Sarah dining with his father. He looked over his shoulder to where Mavid stood in the corner of the room against the wall to his back. His father's assistant Erib stood next to him. Any other time Mavid was welcome to eat at the table with him, but tonight was more formal since his father was here, which was why Toby and Tallia would not be joining them tonight. Till Toby could follow a certain degree of etiquette he would not be allowed to join these more formal dinners.

Mavid's expression was blank as he met Jareth's gaze. Earlier during the lunch with Sarah, they had started out rocky, and it had stayed that way throughout. She had the natural grace and manners of an ogre. He let out a sigh and looked over at the clock, seeing that it was only about five minutes till lunch was served, so they were already running behind. If they showed up late…

He didn't need to fret though, for the doors to the hall opened and he and his father rose to their feet as the females entered the room. Jareth hadn't even fully straightened when his eyes fell on Sarah. He immediately froze in his half-raised position when he did see her.

She looked splendid in all her finery, even more beautiful and elegant than she had when he managed to trap her in his crystal bubble. She looked every bit the queen he knew she had in her somewhere and he was utterly captivated by her so much so that he didn't even notice when his father partially turned to him and whispered a remark about how she certainly looked more like a proper bride when she had clothes on.

Sarah's green eyes met his and he almost forgot to breathe as he moved out of his spot, stepping forward to meet her as she moved up to him, flanked on either side by his cousins. He reached out and she took his hand, her warm and soft skin making contact with his and he was happy to bring her hand to his lips as he bowed slightly to her. He kissed her knuckle, his eyes staying on hers as he did so and he felt both his heart and his sex stir at the blush that dusted her cheeks. He wanted to skip the damn supper, haul her over his shoulder, carry her back to their bedroom and stay there for the next two days. Jareth forced himself to refocus and nodded in acknowledgment of his cousins behind her, who were both curtsying to him. They then turned and curtsied to his father before moving to their seats. Mavid and Erib left their positions against the wall to push their chairs in for them. Jareth turned Sarah to face his father from across the table.

"Father, allow me to properly introduce you to my wife, the Queen of the Labyrinth and its champion, Sarah."

Sarah's face could have passed for expressionless, but Jareth could see the slight wideness of her eyes that signaled just how nervous she was about his father. The male was a rather imposing sight. Sarah curtsied to his father, still a little wobbly at the movement. "Nice to meet you."

A bit informal but Jareth wasn't going to complain.

His father looked at Sarah with a critical eye, his brow going up slightly at her greeting. Finally, though he took his seat, "Shall we begin with our meal then?"

Jareth helped Sarah into her seat and then moved to take his own. She leaned over to him so she could whisper in his ear as he did so. "You said he was coming to see Toby, where is he?"

Rather than tell her the truth, Jareth leaned away from her, pretending he hadn't heard her.

The dining hall doors opened and the two kitchen brownies rolled in the carts, serving King Hamold first and working their way around the table, being sure to serve on the left of each person as they went. Sarah looked down at the display in front of her; a creamy chicken soup, a dinner roll and in her three glasses were a red wine, a white wine, and water, the same as everybody else.

She looked over at Jareth, seeing he had yet to so much as reach for his napkin. His father reached out and took his napkin, unfolding it and placing it in his lap. Jareth then reached out and took his own and he watched out of the corner of his eye as Sarah took that as the signal that it was safe for her to take her own.

By trying to remember as much as possible from earlier, and looking to see what Jareth and Ishapell and Clora were doing, she was able to make it through soup a lot smoother than she had earlier. It wasn't till the soup was cleared and the appetizers were brought out that any words were exchanged.

Hamold looked up from his meal, "I would like to propose a toast," he said, picking up his red wine glass.

Jareth was wary as he picked up his own glass, the females all following suit and holding it out in front of himself.

"To Sarah, who looks like a true queen… no matter what she is wearing."

His cousins exchanged wary and confused looks and Sarah blushed at the backhanded compliment. Jareth openly glared at his father as he grudgingly brought his wine to his lips and sipped from it. He had hoped that his father would be on his best behavior tonight as well since Sarah was able to make that effort even though she didn't want to be having this dinner any more than Hamold did.

His father sipped his own wine and turned to glance at his son. "Excellent wine."

Jareth saw out of the corner of his eye as Sarah gulped back her own wine rather than tasting it. One of the brownies stepped forward to refill her glass. He only hoped that she used discretion with her drinking. "Goblin wine is some of the finest made, they all tend to have extensive knowledge of alcohol," he commented, setting his own glass down.

"So, Sarah, I must say that it was very surprising to hear from my son that he was married again. After all, there was no ceremony that I am aware of. Most women would have wanted to flaunt the fact that they were marrying such a powerful king at least a little. I never even heard any talk of him courting anyone." His voice was casual enough, but Jareth had grown up around him enough to know he was aiming towards something.

Sarah's face turned even redder and she looked down at her food as she spoke rather than the king. "Sorry to hear that," was her simple answer and Jareth hid his smirk as she denied his father an opening by taking a bite of her dinner roll.

His father wasn't one to be deterred though. "Seeing as you are my daughter-in-law now I feel positively embarrassed that I know almost nothing about you. Why don't you tell me a bit about yourself since Jareth has neglected to? How did you meet my son?"

Jareth glared daggers at his father, who neglected to even look at him as he kept his attention solely on Sarah, who now resembled the red in Ishapell's rubies. "She wished my son back to me of course."

Hamold seemed very surprised at that, turning to peg Jareth with his own scowl. "How pray tell did she get a hold of your son in the Aboveground?"

Jareth glanced back at Mavid, who with just the slightest movement of his head signaled that Jareth shouldn't say. Jareth considered listening to his friend but figured his father was sure to find out eventually. "She was the stepdaughter of Carrie, you know that she found another male to raise my son with; Sarah was his daughter."

Sarah was now staring hard at her plate, glaring at it and her face, arms, and bosom were all tinted red. Jareth knew all kinds of thoughts and emotions were no doubt running through her at this discussion, but if she could hold them in he was going to do everything he could to smooth over the situation as quickly as he could.

His father had turned back to look Sarah over with new interest now. Jareth reclaimed his attention before he could question her further. "How is mother doing? I thought perhaps Little Jareth and I would visit tomorrow."

"She's fine; very good. You were the stepdaughter to Carrie?" he inquired, turning his attention back to Sarah despite Jareth's efforts.

Sarah nodded her head once, just a sharp jerk of the head before she bit into her food so she wouldn't have to elaborate.

"There isn't really much to tell there, father. I suggest we move on to a different topic," Jareth insisted gently, thinking that to be a hint even a vegetable would pick up on.

Hamold looked over at Jareth, a dark sort of twinkle in his eye. "Very well, son," he turned back to Sarah once more. "So, when do you think I can expect another grandchild?"

Jareth stood up from his chair immediately in case he needed to restrain his wife from his father, Sarah shot up from her chair at the same time, as did everyone else at the table and Jareth then noticed that at the same time he had stood up Sarah had knocked her red wine all over herself. His cousins both started reaching for their own napkins and pawing and fussing over her as she insisted she was alright, just needing to go clean up. They excused themselves quickly and Jareth turned and asked Mavid to escort them before they could get too far. Once all the females and his assistant were out of the room his father wasted no time in turning on him.

"Carrie's stepdaughter?!" the king hissed, fury written across his face.

X

"King my ass! That man is a boar!" Sarah huffed as she wiped herself off with a rag in the bathroom adjoined to Clora's room since it was the closest and no one dared to use a public bathroom in the goblin castle other than the goblins, who seemed to think the public bathrooms were for both expelling their waste and swimming.

"Jareth told me earlier that one of the rules of dining was to be sure to keep conversations light and pleasant or not to say anything at all. He should have explained that rule to that… that… troll out there!" She didn't care that she was cursing right now, she was angry damn it. Being angry was best right now because otherwise she would very likely lose it and start crying since those two social degenerates out there had seen fit to so much as mention her life Aboveground and her father. It was a bit irrational, but for some reason, she didn't want anyone here to so much as even think of saying anything about her father in front of her, even in passing. She hated knowing that any of the fae were thinking about him like that alone put him in danger. Aside from that, it made her miss him all the more. She was trying very hard to keep it together as best she could so she didn't fight with Jareth and he didn't spoil her chance of escape.

"The king is being rather… rude," Ishapell agreed, trying to help Sarah to remove the liquid wine from her dress before it could set in.

"Come off it Ish, the male is being a complete toad to poor Sarah out there," Clora hissed, standing back since there was no room for her to help without just being in the way.

Sarah was positively fuming. And Jareth was no better. He had told her that his father just wanted to spend time with Toby, but Toby hadn't even been eating with them. It was obvious he had just decided to come and eat with them because of her and Jareth should have warned her at least. And then that last question Hamold had asked her, the one about grandchildren… Oh, he was horrid. She had reached for her wine glass, intent on throwing the stuff right in his smug royal face but at the last moment something inside told her that would be without a doubt the worst idea ever for her own safety and had flicked her wrist instead towards herself so she could at least get away from that fiend.

"I think it should be okay now, thankfully most of it landed on your napkin." Ishapell took her and Sarah's rags and tossed them aside into the wash. "Should we head back out there?"

"Can I ask you something?" Sarah piped up. "What would have happened if I had tossed my wine into the king's face back there?"

Clora got a huge grin on her face and clapped her hands in front of her with a laugh. "Oh, Sarah you should have! For how mean he was being to you? He would have deserved it. That sounds like a laugh riot."

Ishapell looked back at Clora with complete horror on her face. "Most certainly not and if you were to laugh at that you would be punished too." Ishapell turned back to Sarah and placed her hands on the shorter woman's shoulders, her face completely serious. "Did you mean to do that?"

Sarah shrugged. "It occurred to me, but I decided against it."

"Thank the Gods for that then. Jareth is king here but Hamold is the high king and to throw anything at him, even nothing more than a flower, can be termed assault if he sees fit to judge it so. Assault or even attempted assault on his highness are grounds for anything from the very harshest of lashings to centuries of imprisonment or even death. Since he doesn't seem to be very fond of you I would say it was an extremely good thing you made your decision the way you did."

 _Of all the ridiculous…_

There was a knock on the door to the bathroom and Clora bounced over to open it up for Mavid, who was waiting for them outside in Clora's room. "Are you almost ready?" he asked.

Sarah let out a sigh. If she had to never meet that fae again it would be too soon. "Ready," she groaned, allowing Ishapell to pull her along out of the bathroom so they could go back and finish supper.

X


	15. Chapter 15

Beta for this chapter The Art of Suicide

X

"Calm down, father. You're being dramatic," Jareth sighed, leaning back in his seat and taking another sip from his wine, draining the contents of his glass.

Hamold and Erib both were nailing Jareth with looks that could kill and Hamold's cheeks held the slightest blush from his fury. Jareth had known that his father would find out eventually that Sarah was the stepdaughter to his ex-wife, but he had hoped to keep it secret for as long as possible to avoid this very conversation.

"I am not being dramatic," his father hissed out, "I am being realistic in telling you that that is in itself a recipe for disaster." The king came around the table and before Jareth could even react he had taken a hold of the armrests of his chair and forcefully turned Jareth to face him while at the same time trapping him there, like he was a mere lad!

Jareth bit down hard on his anger to keep himself from lashing out at his father for such a disrespectful and degrading act against him as a fellow king. He gripped the armrests of his chair to keep from shoving his father away from him. He knew he wasn't keeping his expression neutral by any means though. Not even close.

His father's voice was low and cold when he spoke. "Now you listen to me and you listen well, son mine. You have always been clever beyond your years so I am amazed now that you are showing less intelligence than a satyr in heat when it comes to this girl. I would have thought that you could see this for yourself but apparently, I need to tell you. This girl will bring you nothing but misery and trouble. Besides being a young human from Aboveground, a mistake you already made with Carrie, she is obviously stronger willed and I can only guess that she will come to follow in that woman's footsteps and make a fool out of you."

"His majesty's lack of respect for himself and his family's reputation certainly does stagger a person," Erib snapped from behind his father.

Jareth's head was pounding from the strain of holding onto his anger, only intensifying his foul mood at being confronted like this.

His father continued on, "You yourself know how poisonous Carrie was, the woman was nothing but pure evil if I ever saw it and she cost you more than just one chance to produce legitimate issue. Do I really have to remind you of both your tragedies?!"

That did it, consequences be damned!

All in a matter of seconds, Jareth shoved his father away from him, standing up and moving up into the other male's face with malice in his eyes. At the same time, he seized the robes his father wore to pull him closer he could feel the blade of one of Erib's daggers against his throat. The fae was suddenly standing right next to him, his eyes full of promise of what he would do if Jareth harmed the high king. He was also a king, so although anyone else would lose their life instantly for pulling a weapon on him, Erib's job was to keep Jareth's father safe from any danger, even if it was Jareth that was dangerous to him. If Mavid were here Jareth knew that he would have had a blade against Erib's neck for Jareth's protection just as quickly. It was their duty.

Jareth didn't back down though as he snarled at his father, who glared back at him with equal contempt, "If you are insinuating that Sarah would actually cause a tragedy in the way that Carrie did… I don't need you to remind me of what all my ex-wife did to me… of what she cost me. Sarah is not like that and you will not treat her with disrespect because of who I used to be wed to or who she was related to. She is Sarah, and my wife and now she is your daughter-in-law and you will treat her with the respect that each of those titles deserve or I will have you escorted out of my kingdom faster than you can blink!"

His father continued to glare back at him but surprisingly kept tight-lipped.

It was Erib that spoke next, his tone barely more than hushed but full of threat. "Remove your hands from his majesty, boy."

Jareth didn't so much as glance away from his father's gaze as he slowly complied, taking his hands from the male and moving back just out of arms-length of the king. Erib dropped his dagger but did not sheath it till the king told him to do so. Once the pious servant did so Jareth unleashed a bit of his anger and slammed his fist into the jaw of the fae despite the screaming pain that it caused his ribs to twist into it, sending Erib staggering back a step in retribution for him pressing a dagger to his throat… and calling him "boy" in the same manner that he had often used while Jareth was still growing up. It had probably mostly been for the latter though.

Hamold rolled his eyes at his son's display of emotion that was considered unbecoming amongst the nobility. "If you are through throwing your fit perhaps it would be smart to retake our seats before the ladies return," he pointed out.

Jareth stepped aside so that the king could make his way back to the table, but as he was passing him Hamold shot his son a look that would have made any creature of lesser will flinch. "Do not for one moment think that we are done with this conversation. I will speak with you on it again tomorrow when you bring my grandson for a visit."

 _Great_.

Once the king was seated Jareth went over and turned his own chair back around to its spot, taking a seat in it. He hid his smirk when he glanced back and saw that Erib was standing back in his spot against the wall behind him, rubbing at his chin.

X

Sarah wasn't sure what had happened while they had been cleaning the spill off the front of her blouse, but the rest of the meal was relatively silent. There were no more cutting remarks or backhanded compliments from Jareth's father, who seemed to have opted to completely ignore her presence as he made small- very small- talk with either Jareth or his cousins, but not with her. She was content to sit there, eat her meal and try to mimic whatever Ishapell or Clora were doing so she wouldn't make a fool out of herself.

Something had to have happened. After they entered she had seen Mavid give Jareth a good once-over as he passed by, pausing and focusing on Jareth's left hand, which had then quickly disappeared to under the table. Since then she had seen out of the corner of her eye Mavid shooting suspicious glares at the other servant standing by him at the wall.

By the time desert was taken away and coffee brought out Sarah was biting back yawns left and right since it was 'rude to yawn or sneeze or belch during dinner'. She was tired though, and bored, and full of food, and feeling rather relaxed from just the little glass of wine she had had. She was barely able to keep her eyes open and although she hated coffee she took a few sips of the foul liquid just to help keep her awake a little longer.

Jareth was taking another drink from his wine glass, leaving his coffee untouched as his father spoke with him casually but incessantly about things Sarah couldn't even guess at in a language that sounded almost Gaelic crossed with something else. She found it kind of rude though that the king had switched to speaking with Jareth in a language he must have known that she wouldn't understand. Although he probably wasn't now she couldn't help but feel like just maybe he was talking about her or even about things pertaining to her.

Next to her Clora and Ishapell were both talking in hushed but casual tones about members of the fae court that she had never heard of. It seemed mainly to be gossip; "so-and-so has a new carriage" and "the dress what's-her-face wore at the last solstice gala looked horrid", "oh and you'll never believe who was caught sleeping with a dwarf!". Silly stuff like that.

Sarah turned to Clora next to her and hushed her voice, forcing the female to lean in closer to her so she would be heard. "What are the two of them speaking about?"

Clora glanced over at Jareth and Hamold, then paused so she could listen in. She smiled and turned back to Sarah. "I don't know. I don't speak elfin. You could just ask."

Sarah shook her head but it was already too late as Clora cleared her throat loudly enough to catch the attention of the two males, who looked over at her with matching annoyance in their eyes. "Forgive me, dear uncle and cousin, it's just that Sarah was wondering what you are saying and I didn't know what to tell her."

Sarah wanted to drop right through the floor as both Jareth and his father shifted their gaze over to her. She could have killed Clora for doing that! She looked over at the fae woman next to her, but she simply stared back at her. There was no malice or mischief in her eyes to speak that she had done it to be mean, but simply as a means to an end.

Sarah was sure that once again she was scarlet red as she turned back to Jareth and King Hamold. "I was only wondering out of curiosity," she muttered, wishing that they would just go back to their conversation so that everyone in the room was not staring at her like she was a moron or something.

"Curiosity killed the cat, my dear," Hamold replied nonchalantly as he took a last drink from his coffee and stood up, ready to leave no doubt. "Thank you for the meal, son mine. It was… full of surprises."

Jareth stood up from his seat as well. "Shame you are leaving early," he responded dryly.

The king nodded and his serving fae stepped over to him from his position next to Mavid, not even acknowledging Jareth as he stepped around him to stand next to the king.

Ishapell and Clora set their coffee down and got up from their seats, so Sarah followed suit. The King moved to the head of the table where Jareth stood and the two gave each other stiff embraces that included hardly anything more than a chest butt and then sharp slaps on each other's backs before pulling away from each other. "I expect you to visit tomorrow," the king simply said in a voice that was more commanding than anything and Sarah couldn't help but feel some justice being served that even Jareth had someone to boss him around.

Sarah froze and her hairs stood on end when the king stepped around Jareth and approached her till he was not even a foot away. She looked past him to Jareth, who was staring at her like he was trying to mentally tell her what she needed to do. Beyond him, it was Mavid who helped her out by demonstrating very quickly so no one else saw that she should curtsy. Sarah gave a small curtsy and the king reached out and took her hand, pressing down hard on her knuckle with his thumb as he brought it to just a centimeter or so from his lips before dropping it, making sure to not actually kiss it. "It was very interesting to meet you, child. As you are now my daughter-in-law I can only express my sympathies and regrets that I had not been able to meet you before you married my son."

His tone was pleasant enough, but there was a look in his eyes that made slight shivers race up and down Sarah's arms from fear. She was glad he had not been able to meet her outside a setting such as this that demanded civility.

When she did not reply he simply moved on to Clora and Ishapell, nodding to them both in approval at their curtsies and wishing them both a good night. Once all that needed to be said was said and the formalities were out of the way the high king and his servant left. Silvery clouds of magic dust fell to the floor in their wake before glimmering out of existence.

 _Good riddance_.

There seemed to be something of a collective sigh from everyone in the room after the pair had taken their leave and Mavid even broke away from the wall to move up to the table. Sarah jumped when the doors to the room burst open and the little brownie pushing his cart came in and rushed over to where Mavid was taking his seat at the table, slipping a plate of food down in front of him before refilling Jareth's wine glass.

As Mavid dug in everyone retook their seats, Clora's giggle breaking the silence in the room. "Well wasn't that a fun dinner?"

Jareth's eyes narrowed on the fae and his tone lacked all humor as he replied. "You could have cut the 'fun' with a knife."

She tried to hold it, then hide it behind her hand but an abnormally large yawn forced its way from her mouth. "Excuse me," she signed, wanting desperately to just lay her head down on the table. Since the dinner, itself was over now she did rest her elbow on it though, resting her head on that. She looked over at Jareth just in time to catch him watching her again, his face utterly expressionless other than that he looked tired too. Was he mad at her at all? It wouldn't really surprise her if he was, he was always mad at her for no reason.

Jareth opened his mouth as if to say something to her, but Ishapell spoke up, catching his attention. "You are going to visit her majesty tomorrow, Sire? With your son?"

Sarah looked up at that. It hadn't even dawned on her that that had been what the king had implied before leaving. She hadn't known what Hamold was like before supper, but now that she did she didn't want Toby to be around him. As far as she knew Toby had never been around the king before. What if he was just as cruel towards Toby as he was towards her? She was seventeen, but Toby was a baby and would have no defenses whatsoever against any mistreatment. During supper, Jareth had just sat back and let his father dig into her… aside from his one attempt to change the subject… like he hadn't even cared. Would he allow the same to be done to Toby? She had a hard time believing so what with how protective and caring he was towards his son, but she still worried about it.

Jareth nodded his head in response to Ishapell's question. "I am indeed."

"Would you want us to prepare Sarah tomorrow morning so that she may go too and meet the queen?"

"No."

She didn't want to meet his mother, not doubting that she would probably just be a female version of Jareth and his father. She had barely been able to stand Jareth's father as it was and she had a hard enough time taking Jareth in large doses. Still, it surprised her when Jareth had simply snapped out a "no" like the idea was simply out of the question. For reasons she didn't understand it rubbed hard at her pride for Jareth to view her as unfit for meeting his mother even though he had seemed to find her fit enough to marry and raise Toby with him. He really must be mad at her for some reason. Maybe he was mad that she had been clumsy enough to spill her drink on herself or that she hadn't given a truly proper goodbye to his father. Well, he could suck a lemon! She had done her best damn it and she hadn't really been trying to impress him anyway.

Sarah didn't even realize that the room had gone very quiet after that as she glared down at the table in front of her until Clora spoke up. "So, we'll have the castle to ourselves tomorrow?"

Jareth laughed mockingly at that. "Certainly not. Mavid will be left in charge while I am away and I expect no trouble to occur in my few hours of absence." He shot a warning look first to Clora and then to Sara as he said this. Sarah suppressed her deep urge to glare right back at him. _Suck a lemon Jareth! In fact, choke on one while you're at it._

She nodded her head in understanding as she fought to keep her face neutral.

Jareth was staring at her again as if he was measuring her or something. Sarah turned her head away from him so she wouldn't feel as inclined to snap at him for it, but she could still feel his eyes on her. He was really irritating when he did that. She almost jumped when he abruptly stood up from his seat and came to stand behind hers. She barely could stand before he pulled her chair out for her and took her hand in his to lead her away from the table at a swift pace. "The rest of you are free for the night," he dismissed them over his shoulder as he pulled her along.

Sarah bristled all over in slight fear and anxiousness. She had no idea where he was taking her. His hand on hers was firm but painless as they went along at a slower pace than she would have suspected from Jareth and she couldn't help but wonder if maybe his ankle was still giving him pain. She had noticed that he seemed to try to hide or possibly ignore his injuries as much as possible. She couldn't see his face fully but he didn't seem at all happy as he continued to pull her along.

He didn't take her back to their bedroom like she thought he would, but instead down flights of stairs and to the garden door. This worried her even more than if he had taken her to their bedroom. Did he know about the worm? Did he know she was planning on trying to come out here tonight to see if she could still meet with him?

Her head spun with worries and questions as he opened the door. "Jareth, why are we going outside? Where are you taking me?" she demanded.

"I would think that would be obvious," he shrugged as he led her out and down the stone path.

Sarah's heart was in her throat and she tried not to be obvious about it as her eyes raked over the plants that they were passing, looking for any trace of her friend. She was so avid in her search that she almost ran right into Jareth when he stopped without warning. She looked up to see he had brought her back to the black thorny tree that blocked the way to the willow and the hidden little valley.

Like before Jareth waved it out of the way and he guided her passed it along the hidden trail. Sarah didn't say anything further as she followed him. She had been afraid that he was bringing her out here to do something heinous like torture the worm in front of her or something. Now it didn't seem like that was the plan at all. She could only guess at his real plan.

Jareth took her to the willow and moved the curtain of branches aside, allowing her to pass by him and enter first. Only once she was past the barrier the willow created did he release her hand, allowing the branches to fall closed behind him and block out most of the natural light from outside.

Sarah didn't know what to expect from him, so when he simply stood there in the near darkness for a moment, his eyes still trained on her and his face expressionless, she felt completely uncomfortable and wished that she could just go back inside. She startled when Jareth moved to her and took her in his arms, burying his face against her neck and shoulder as he let out a heavy sigh. After a very uncertain moment as to what she should do, she brought her arms up around him as well, not so much holding him as simply resting on his back. She was still mad about dinner and afraid of what he meant to do yet.

He didn't say anything for what felt like a long while, simply holding her in his arms and breathing softly against her neck. It was an uncomfortably intimate gesture and she wasn't sure if she should respond or pull away.

It was Jareth who pulled away, but only so he could move to kiss her jaw and then her cheek. Her lips parted as she prepared for him to kiss her but he didn't, simply hovering over her instead, mere centimeters from her lips. "Have I told you yet tonight how exquisite you look? You are naturally beautiful, but tonight you stun me with your magnificence."

Sarah could feel the blush starting to rise to her cheeks, but forced it back as she thought of how much she hated supper and the way she had been treated in general today. He could save the smooth talk as far as she was concerned. Since he was holding her tightly and didn't seem about to let her go, she rested her hands against his chest so she would have room and leaned back slightly from him so she could look at him. "I don't want you to take Toby with you when you leave tomorrow."

Jareth frowned at that. "Compliments are truly wasted on you, aren't they?"

She frowned back at him. "I'm serious, Jareth. I don't want Toby around your father. That man is a… well I'm sorry if this upsets you, but the man is a real douche bag!"

Jareth looked perplexed for a moment. "I'll simply assume that a- a 'douche bag' is an Aboveground way of insulting someone. You are right though that he was rather unfair to you tonight and I am sorry for that. If I had known he would act so callously I would have made sure that he would not have joined us for supper, or at least that you could have eaten in our room till he was gone or something."

Sarah was absolutely stunned and she was sure her face reflected it. Had he just apologized?! With a real "sorry" and everything?! That was probably the first time he had given her a proper apology for anything, which was kind of sad when you thought about it. Apparently, it was okay for him to be rude and nasty to her, but no one else. Still, the fact that he had apologized at all was shocking.

"You needn't worry about our son though. Despite him being born of Carrie he is first and foremost my son and heir to the throne and my father and mother both adore him. They were both taken with him the last time he went to see them and simply want a return visit. It has been about a week after all and he is their grandson."

She found it very weird to hear him refer to Toby as _their son_. Had he been around Jareth's parents before? What the hell? So, his father was fine with Toby because he was Jareth's son but hated her because she was his wife? She was so confused and she couldn't help her temper as her mind spun.

"So, you apparently take Toby around your parents all the time but your father hates me and you won't even introduce me to your mother?" she growled out.

It was Jareth who looked surprised now, he continued to hold her to him though, even when she pushed against him. She only tried harder to pull away when he suddenly grinned at her like he was laughing at her. "You want to meet my mother?"

"No!" she snapped indignantly, "That's not my point at all. I don't understand why your parents dislike me so much! They don't even know me."

The smile fell and Jareth let out a long sigh at that, his hold relaxing but not releasing. "Precious, it's not you that they hate. Truthfully, they hate Carrie, as do most of the fae. They don't know you, you're right, but they knew Carrie. She was even dear friends with my mother once upon a time. They knew Carrie and they know that you were her stepdaughter, so they only assume that in some way shape or form you are like her, even though you are not. Just be patient and it won't be long for them to see that. And you will meet my mother, but not yet. I plan on introducing you to her at the end of the week when you both have had a bit more time to adjust."

Why would the fae hate Karen? Because she left Jareth? Sarah had noticed before that although they had almost never spoken of her, whenever Ishapell or Clora had mentioned Karen they had talked poorly of her. Sarah couldn't help but feel terrible for Karen, being hated just because she had managed to escape from her marriage to Jareth. He hadn't mentioned much about his marriage to her, but she remembered him saying that it had turned for the worse during the last fifty years or so. If he was as bad towards her as he was to Sarah over fifty years… she couldn't imagine. She was going to do everything possible to make sure she didn't have to find out what it was like for Karen though. She would find a way back to her family and the world she belonged in.

That must have been what his father had been talking about when he had mentioned something happening at the end of the week. Jareth planned to introduce her to his mother.

She would hopefully be long gone by then. Sarah looked down at the ground next to them as if expecting to see the worm suddenly there beside her. There was nothing and no one in here but her and Jareth though.

He leaned forward, pulling her closer against him as he placed another kiss on her cheek. "Thank you for tonight though. You were very good despite my father's belittlements. I'm very proud of you."

"You're not mad at me then?"

"Mad at you?! Why would I be? You were wonderful tonight.

Despite that it was coming from him, she couldn't help but feel better at his words. Regardless of the source it still felt nice to have her hard work and self-restraint noticed and appreciated. She allowed herself the small smile that was pressing at her lips.

Jareth smiled too and placed two more kisses against her forehead and nose.

When a giggle escaped her at his gesture of affection he grinned and she froze. What the hell was she doing giggling like that?!

Sarah didn't have time to chastise herself though as he turned her around so that her back was pressed against the bark of the willow and his body pressed against the front of hers from her knees to her lips as he kissed her for real, his soft warm lips pressing into hers and moving against her in a way that clouded her thoughts with warm euphoria as the smell of the wine on his breath tingled at her nose.

"I really am pleased with how you conducted yourself tonight, precious," he murmured against her lips. "So much in fact that I feel like spoiling you for it." He offered her a vulpine grin before placing another chaste kiss against her lips. "Is there anything you want from me?"

She was almost startled by his question. Was he actually offering to give her something? A present?

He could save it, the thing she wanted most from him was her freedom and he didn't seem about to give her that. In fact, she had a feeling that if she even asked him for that it would do nothing but make him angry with her. She wanted nothing else from him that she could think of.

 _Well actually_ …

"Can you send for Ishapell's pet back home to be brought to stay out here with her? I think she said his name was Tarik or something…"

Jareth frowned at that. "You are asking for something for Ishapell? I thought you couldn't stand the female."

"Well, this morning we had a good talk and… she's not so bad." Besides, Sarah thought it would be a nice gesture as a sign of good faith between her and her new found friend and she also missed Merlin very much so it would be nice to have a pet running around again. Toby loved animals, he would probably like having one around again too.

Jareth rolled his eyes and pulled back from her. "It figures that you want nothing from me for yourself when I offer it but instead pass my gifts off to the next person in line." There was the slightest edge to his words.

"You won't bring him here for Ishapell then?"

He let out a sigh and considered her request. "I want to gift _you_ with something, Sarah, not my cousin. But I'll make a deal with you, if you are on your best behavior tomorrow while I am gone, then I will have this Tarik creature brought here. Fair?"

Seemed okay. Sarah nodded her head in agreement.

"Now, what is something you want, Precious? New jewels, perhaps a new lingerie set?" he teased.

Maybe she should ask him for a chastity belt instead?

Then again though, sex with him was just about the only affection or contact she had with anyone around here… it pretty much was the only love that she got from anyone at all. "Can I think about it?"

Jareth let out another sigh but kissed her again. "Well, yes… but I would like an answer before the night is out." When she nodded her head in agreement he leaned down again to kiss her, this time more thoroughly than before. His tongue licked across her lower lip and when she opened for him his tongue penetrated her much the same as he no doubt planned to do before much longer.

After but a moment he pulled away from her entirely, stepping back out of her reach as she stayed leaning against the tree for balance, her breathing slightly heavier. He was a very good kisser, so she had been the slightest bit disappointed when he pulled away, leaving her exposed to the air that felt a bit cooler now that his warmth was gone. His eyes held their usual intensity as they raked over her, drinking her in like he wanted to remember every detail of her dress. "I meant it when I said you look stunning tonight," he confessed, his voice low and deeper sounding, "Like some enchanting queen I would expect to meet in a bewitched forest."

His compliments went straight to her ego despite herself and she couldn't help but blush and smile a little in response. Jareth took it as a sign to keep going and moved back over to her, placing his gloved hands on either side of her on the tree, trapping her in place as he moved in close, hovering over but taking care not to actually touch her at all. "I've been thinking about this all through dinner," he confessed, reaching up and taking one of the dangling strands of her hair between his fingers. He slid his hand down the strand, the back of his crushed leather glove brushing over her lifted cleavage and sending goose bumps over her arms.

Tonight, she was far too tired and far too starved for contact to resist as he let go of her hair and trailed his fingers over the exposed skin of her breasts. He moved up against her and Sarah gasped as she felt his hard length pressing against her hip even through the thick skirts of her dress. His mouth landed on the skin of her neck and she couldn't help but moan as he sucked at her skin till it rode that thin line between pain and pleasure.

She brought her hands up and gripped the long strands of his blonde hair in response, feeling just how soft they were between her own fingers.

Jareth pulled her away from the rough wood of the willow tree and laid her out on the abnormally soft grass next to the base, kissing her with that same skill that he always used to make her head feel like she was in a fog. It wasn't until he had started to lift the various skirts of her dress that she snapped out of it and struggled against him. "Jareth, no!" she protested as she tried to push her skirting back down.

Jareth held firmly onto the fabric so that she wouldn't be able to without ripping it.

"Jareth, we can't!" she protested again, glaring up at him for being so stubborn.

He frowned back down at her. "Why ever not?"

Was he serious?

"Jareth, I'm still… you know…" she had never talked to hardly anyone about things like periods, except Karen when she had needed to and her girlfriends at school. It was just something to her that you didn't mention to guys, especially men, and especially Jareth. It just felt weird and embarrassing to. "Remember this morning?"

He paused for a minute, confused. Then it dawned on him and understanding spread over his face.

It astounded her that he could have forgotten, considering how mortifying it had been for her.

"Oh, you need a moment to ready yourself?" he asked.

Ready herself?! Was he serious? That had not been the reaction she had been hoping for or expecting. They were out in the middle of the garden for one. And for another… did couples really do this sort of thing even during "that time of the month"?

Sarah continued to try to push her skirts down till finally Jareth let go of them and rolled onto his side next to her as if waiting for something. He was probably waiting for her to "get herself ready" or whatever. He could forget it. As of a week ago she had never had sex before, she wasn't going to have it while on her period! It just seemed odd to her. What if it hurt? What if it was bad for her body to have sex now? Sarah rose to her feet now while she had the chance and took several steps away from Jareth, who simply watched her with curiosity on his face.

"I'm not going to have sex with you, Jareth," she stated firmly.

He frowned at that and sat up, to which she backed up another step. Through his tight leggings, his arousal was still evident.

"I just don't feel comfortable doing that while menstruating," she defended herself, hoping that one way or another she could convince him to just leave her be on this one.

"Precious, there is nothing wrong with it," he assured her patiently. "It's perfectly fine to do so during your monthly. It's just another natural part of any female."

Sarah just shook her head, straightening her spine a little. Even if what he said was true, she still didn't want to. She was a little afraid to. "Just earlier you offered me a gift of my choosing, Jareth."

His eyes widened slightly in understanding of where she was heading with this. "Sarah-"

"Well, I want it to be that during the time I am on my period that you will not force me to have sex with you."

Jareth let out a long sigh and rubbed the bridge of his nose between his thumb and forefinger again. He seemed to do that when he was irritated. After a long pause, he let out another sigh. "Alright fine, if that is your wish I will honor it… and not force you, but if you ever consent to allow me to I will have you."

She let out her own sigh of relief. That wasn't going to happen anytime soon. "Yeah fine, but just so we're clear asking me if I want to when I'm sleeping and not hearing an objection is not an invitation!" She hadn't really expected him to agree to that at all. She expected him to do the Jareth thing… anything it took to get his way.

"Well obviously," Jareth grumbled, rolling his mismatched eyes at her. Jareth leaned back against the base of the willow, crooking a leg so that his arousal wasn't as obvious. He looked back at Sarah after a moment of settling in and held his hand out to her. "Will you at least join me in relaxing for a moment before we head in?"

Sarah couldn't see the harm in that, and it would be nice to have some affection that wasn't sexual for a change… even if it was coming from Jareth. She slowly moved back over to him and took his hand, allowing him to help her down onto the ground next to him and position her so that she was curled up against him with her head against his chest and her knees bent over his leg. His arm was wrapped around her and his free hand held hers in his lap.

"Peeping toms," Jareth grumbled under his breath.

Sarah lifted her head at that. "Huh?"

Jareth motioned towards the willow branches around them and Sarah could see now the faint silvery shimmers of little fairies hanging from the branches and peering through at her and Jareth, about four or five of them. _Well of all the…_

"Just ignore them and relax, Sarah. It won't take long at all for them to grow bored and leave us be," Jareth advised.

The same exhaustion that Sarah had felt at supper hastily crept over her and before she knew it she had managed to nod off in Jareth's arms; who closely followed behind her into slumber land.

X

"Hey! Hey! Pssst!"

Sarah felt like she was floating back down to the ground as she very slowly came awake, her eyes cracking open just the slightest bit but focusing on ultimately nothing before closing again. "Wake up you!" the same small voice as before whispered to her again.

Sarah opened her eyes again, still not seeing anyone.

"Don't cha move too quick now, or ya'll wake 'im up."

Sarah took only a moment to figure out that she was draped over Jareth's sleeping body, which had shifted to lay on the grass overnight. It was still dark out, but it certainly seemed lighter in the canopy of the tree than she had remembered it being when she had fallen asleep. It had to be very early morning then. Maybe two or three. Sarah very slowly and carefully turned her head so as to not wake Jareth, only to startle ever so slightly when she saw the worm sitting on her shoulder.

Taking the opportunity, she had, she slowly and tentatively moved from Jareth's sleeping form and slowly scooted along the grass with the worm still sitting patiently on her shoulder till she could slip out of the curtain of the willow branches. Jareth didn't so much as stir. Once they fell closed behind her she then got to her feet and stealthily hurried down the hill to the little valley where she figured would be a safe distance from Jareth's hearing before she turned and scooped the worm gently from her shoulder into her hand, sitting down on the ground to talk with him as her heart hammered in her chest and her head spun with relief at seeing him here and safe.

"I am so happy to see you!" she said softly, still afraid that somehow Jareth would hear her. "I was afraid maybe you were hurt, or maybe you forgot about me."

The worm shook his head. "Not at all, Miss. I's just didn' want that sneak of his 'ighness to see me."

Sarah frowned at that. "What do you mean? What sneak?"

"I'm surprised ya didn' see 'em, hidin' in the garden and whatnot like some shadow to spy on ya. I was around Miss, but I couldn' say anything and I's sorry for that."

"I don't understand, what do you mean?"

"That Mavid that his majesty keeps around. Didn' ya know he is a great spy that one? One of the best he is, but I suppose bein' able to change into yer own shadow 'elps."

"Mavid was spying on me that night?!" she couldn't help but feel outraged that Jareth had somehow knew and set her up like that.

"Saw him follow ye out into the garden me-self. Jus' saw you and his majesty this time though, so I though' I'd take me chance when ya was sleepin'. Hope I didn' disturb ya, Miss."

Sarah shook her head. "Not at all. When do we leave here? I think I can get Toby, but I need to know when."

"The sooner the better, Miss, but I think that I will have to ask ya ter wait another couple of nights."

"What? Why?"

"Getting' outta 'ere won' be easy, and then getting away after that will be harder. It will take time. We can no chance his majesty or Mavid to see you doing so and stopping ya now, can we? The Underground Women are cookin' up something to help ya they are, but they need another day or so before it will be ready. If we meet back here two nights from now, I'll have had time to get it to ya and hide it and I can tell ya how to use it from there. We'll get cha out o' here the very next night. So, jus think, in three nights, you'll be back 'ome again."

Sarah couldn't keep the grin off her face. "Oh, that will be wonderful."

"Jus make sure that in the meantime ya don't do anything to arouse his majesty's suspicion of ya. Just keep on like yer are and keep coming out here regularly. Wit any luck, Mavid will stop watching ya if he thinks there is nothing to watch for."

Sarah nodded her head in perfect understanding. Anything to get her and Toby away from here. "Oh, thank you so much for all of this, I don't know what I can ever do to repay you!" She kissed the tip of her finger and placed it against the worm's cheek, to which he smiled up at her.

"Think nothin' of it, Miss. I'll be back in two nights and no before then so don' be looking for me." Sarah nodded her head and set him down on the grass, giving him one last appreciative smile before turning and scrambling back up the hill towards the willow. She was going to escape after all! She was so excited she couldn't keep the grin from her face.

She about screamed when she brushed back the branches and almost ran right into Jareth, who had no doubt been just about to come find her.

He peered down at her through narrow eyes, glancing behind her down at the valley. "Where were you?"

"Bathroom," she quickly lied.

Jareth raised his brow at that. "Do you usually grin from going to the bathroom outside?"

Sometimes he was too observant for a man. She shrugged her shoulders. "I really had to go."

Jareth's eyes narrowed further but after a long moment he held back the branches for Sarah so that she may enter the dome of the willow. "Let's head inside then, precious. I don't tend to care for sleeping outside when I have the option of a warm bed inside."

Sarah nodded and allowed him to lead her back to the castle, hiding her smile as best as she could the whole time.


	16. Chapter 16

Beta is The Art of Suicide, whom works her butt off.

X

"Three more nights?!" Carrie gasped into the mirror. Shock, horror and the lacings of outrage were in her tone and on her face- what the Underground women could see of it anyway in their mirror's very large close-up- as they explained the situation to her.

Mudanet growled under her breath and knew that her sisters were likewise annoyed with Carrie's impatience. "Yes, we were lucky that the Path Master was able to contact her at all last night to warn her of the situation. The medicine will not be mature enough to work at all for another couple days. We won't take the risk of the Goblin King finding out it was us who harbored the girl and his only son."

 _Again._

They still hadn't told Carrie about the tragedy that had befallen their changelings shortly after they had helped her, and she hadn't bothered to ask anything, other than that about her own children. That was fine. They would be happy to explain it after she took in their changelings as par the agreement and witnessed as they slit the new queen's throat as punishment.

"I don't see why you don't just make Sarah a poison to slip to Jareth and Mavid. Hell, she could use it on everyone in that godforsaken kingdom if she needed to," Carrie muttered bitterly.

Mudanet pointed one gnarled and crooked hand at Carrie's image on the mirror. "Do not presume to tell us how to do this Daughter of Eve! We are doing you a favor, but can stop at any time."

That obviously scared her as Carrie immediately balked and started riling off apologies. "Please, I meant no offense to you. I was hardly more than pondering out loud to myself but a thought. I am grateful to you."

"To kill a royal with poison… we would be found out and burned to dust! One would hardly investigate for sleeping serum amongst chaos such as a missing queen," her sister Netamud piped up from behind her.

Not to mention they wanted Jareth alive and at their mercy to suffer as they forced him to bring them more human babes in exchange for his only son's safety. By holding his son captive, they would have not only Jareth in their hands, but even King Hamold wouldn't dare cross them at the risk of his grandson.

"The serum will mature in about two days and then the Path Master will take it to your girl and instruct her on its use," Tamuden chimed in.

"While the castle sleeps…"

"She will take the baby prince…"

"And the Path Master will lead her to us before anyone can awaken," her triplet sisters Menduat, Atemund, and Detanum all informed the human woman.

"Then you will help us open the channel between the mirrors and we will first send to you two changeling children… then your own." Mudanet finished. "This is our agreement and so it shall not be differentiated just because you are impatient."

Carrie nodded her head, a bit more slowly this time. "Of course. Again, I apologize. I must go now, but I will continue to keep in touch."

The image faded to black as the connection ended before the mirror returned to reflecting the images of the ancient women.

Mudanet and her sisters turned back to the fire pit dug into the cave wall, the shallow cauldron there was very gently bubbling with the clear liquid inside that was a powerful sleeping potion.

 _Kill them all with poison, Bah_! As if they would let the goblin king off so easily. He would live in his misery just like they had. No one with half a brain crossed the Underground women, something that those two fools would soon understand.

X

 _This is the worst day ever_ , Sarah decided as she stared out the window of the throne room at the approaching carriage. Carried towards the castle inside of it was the one who would be making her miserable for the next few days.

The throne room was quite crowded today, besides her and the others standing about the room was full of goblins, all of whom were also crowded around the windows to see the approaching visitor. Some were already spitting out the window at the carriage. Sarah wasn't about to ask a single one of them to stop either. Yesterday's lessons on dining had been horrible enough with Jareth and Mavid, but now some pompous female of the aristocracy was coming to try to fill her head with more ridiculous and useless knowledge about propriety.

After they had woken up this morning Jareth had promptly reminded her of her promise to him to be on her best behavior all day in exchange for having Ishapell's pet, Tarik, sent over for her. After which he then decided to fill her in to the fact that today while he was away with Toby she would be busy here with etiquette classes. According to Jareth, a female fae named Rally was going to be visiting to instruct her on the "ways an aristocrat of the fae should behave and if you intend to keep your word you will listen carefully to all she has to teach you."

She didn't know Jareth was behind her again till he spoke up and she about jumped out of her skin at his commanding tone. "Stop that all of you!" he snapped at the spitting creatures, who all seemed to simply ignore him as they didn't even pause.

Sarah tried to hide her smile as she glanced out of the corner of her eye at Jareth. He was dressed a tad differently than he normally did, his crème-colored flowing shirt buttoned up. His pants being on the baggier side for another- baggy for him anyway, yet they still showed the shape of his legs and the slightest glance of bulge. He carried Toby in one arm and a worried and weary expression on his face. He didn't seem to be looking forward to the day any more than she was. Behind him, by the throne, Tallia was waiting with a full satchel of supplies for Toby to have with her while they were gone. She looked better than the last time Sarah had seen her, but that wasn't necessarily much of an improvement.

Clora and Ishapell both looked rather nervous as they stood back and waited. When Sarah had told them what Jareth had told her about Rally while they were helping her dress this morning they had both gone very quiet. Apparently, they both knew of her. Clora had been the one to let Sarah know that Rally was a stuck-up snot even by the fae standards and although she was considered the best at what she did hiring her was an extreme move on Jareth's part. Sarah figured that that probably meant he _really_ didn't find her good enough to present to his mother. She couldn't help but feel just as offended by it as she had last night.

She looked over at him, sizing him up out the corner of her eye from his wild blonde hair, the haughty way he carried himself, the inappropriately and dangerously tight pants he always wore… she would never have introduced someone like him to her father out of sheer embarrassment. Who was he to judge her?!

Jareth bounced Toby against his hip when he started to fuss, turning to face Sarah. "I'll be leaving soon, it will be up to you and Mavid to give Rally a proper greeting."

She simply nodded her head, both wishing that he would go and that he would stay.

"Stop pouting, Sarah," he chided her.

"I'm not pouting!" she muttered indignantly.

He simply smirked down at her and she wanted to slap him. He held Toby out to her. "Will you say goodbye so that we may go?"

Despite her annoyance with Jareth, she could never take it out on Toby. She smiled brightly as she took Toby from his hold into her arms.

"Sa-Sa!" Toby cooed bouncing in her arms. "Ah be going?"

Sarah kissed his soft cheek and ran her hand through his fine blonde hair, already so very much like his father's, as she held him in her arms. "I'm staying here, Toby, but yes you're going." She ignored Jareth's grimace at her insistence for calling his son Toby as she kissed his other cheek. "Be good, okay?" she whispered into his ear.

Jareth held his hands back out for the babe.

Slowly and reluctantly, Sarah returned him to Jareth's hold. She was comforted by the knowledge that in just a few days' time Toby would never be within a thousand feet of the Goblin King again. He would be with her, back home with Karen and their father and safe. He would grow up a normal boy and just be a normal person. _Enjoy it while you can Jareth…_

"Please keep an eye on him always while you are gone," Sarah pleaded, still worried about him being around Jareth's parents.

Jareth placed a kiss against Toby's temple and held him close. Sarah had to turn away, looking back out the window rather than at Jareth and Toby. Sometimes she wished that Jareth were as cruel to Toby as he was to her. It would make it so much easier to ghost Toby away with her and not feel at all bad for it. She knew she probably still shouldn't feel bad about it at all, given the circumstances, but even she could see that Jareth was a deeply devoted father to his son. Taking Toby away from him now would probably destroy him.

 _Jareth would deserve it though_ , she reminded herself, _After all, he took us both away from my father without a single thought or regret_.

"He'll be perfectly safe, love. I assure you," Jareth sighed. "It's just a visit to his grandparents, not a mission through enemy lines."

Sarah hardly saw the difference.

"Will you not also bid me goodbye?" he smirked, holding his arm out to invite her into an embrace as he shifted Toby back over to his side.

Sarah could tell exactly what he was hoping for. She placated him by simply taking his outstretched hand in hers and lowering his arm so he couldn't actually embrace her as she leaned in and placed a quick kiss to his lips, stepping back almost as soon as contact was made.

Jareth said nothing to this but the look on his face was dark. He was mad at her rather dismissive goodbye. The part of her that deemed it necessary for her to keep on his good side demanded that she make amends by trying again with another kiss to appease him, but the knowledge that he was leaving her here all day to be bossed around by some snooty old hag made her stand her ground and simply stare back at him, her face kept free of any disdain by sheer will power.

Jareth didn't take his dark gaze from her as he spoke to Ishapell. "Just so you are aware, cousin mine, Sarah asked me to send for your Tarik to be brought here to you on the condition that she behave herself today. If Rally gives me good news when I return then I will do so as par my agreement with my wife. I hope she doesn't disappoint you."

The shock on Ishapell's face was enough to rival that on Sarah's. She hadn't told Ishapell about that because she didn't want her to know in case she ended up losing her temper or doing anything that Jareth would classify as "misbehaving" today. Her friendship with the female was still shaky and she didn't want to chance really upsetting her just to lose that friendship again. Jareth was sore about her good-bye to him though so he had spilled the beans.

"I'll see you tonight then," Jareth smirked at her before turning on his heel and carrying Toby with him out of the room, Tallia hurrying along on his heels. He paused on his way out and whispered something in Mavid's ear so the others wouldn't hear. Mavid's blue eyes flicked to Sarah before he nodded his head and Jareth left.

Sarah fought hard to contain her anger. No doubt he had just told Mavid to watch her like a hawk or something like that. Being the puppet that he was, he would no doubt do it for Jareth.

Ishapell and Clora both rushed over to her. Ishapell's look of excitement just about killed her to see. "Is that true? What he said about Tarik?"

"You're not one for easy challenges, are you?" Clora piped in.

"Hush, Clora! She will be fine!" Ishapell scolded the female.

Sarah felt heavy in the pit of her stomach. Today was going to… it was going to be...

It was just going to suck!

Mavid moved up to stand next to her, "Are you ready, your majesty? She is waiting for you down in the sitting room.

At this news, all the goblins turned and rushed out of the room, nearly knocking Sarah over as they hurried to go to the sitting room. She couldn't help but fantasize that maybe the goblins would have the female run out before she even had to meet her, but most likely they would just do as they always did; jeer laugh and tease from a distance but snoop around corners and doorways for closer inspections. They were just the slightest bit cowardly in her opinion.

 _Dead girl walking_ , Sarah thought bitterly to herself as she allowed Mavid to lead her out of the throne room.

They all made their way down the halls toward the sitting room, Ishapell and Clora following along behind. Sarah could just strangle Jareth for letting it all slip out to Ishapell, who would no doubt be sore at her again if she failed to keep her side of the bargain with Jareth… one that she would have never even made if she had known this would be happening today. She had thought that he would be gone from the castle, Mavid would be overseeing things, and she would be free to just waste the day away. It would have been easy enough to fulfill the bargain then.

The goblins were all gathered around the doors of the sitting room, all trying to peak in under the door and through the keyholes at the fae inside in their snoopy sneaky habits.

Mavid cleared his throat at them and they all scattered out of the way, giggling and cackling mischievously. "Out of the way, all of you," Mavid commanded, making his way through the parting goblins, kicking a few in much the same way Jareth tended to as he went along. He reached the door and opened it without so much as a glance back over his shoulder. Sarah looked passed him, as did many of the other goblins that had regathered around the door upon its opening, much to Mavid's annoyance. He kicked a few more of them back with his boots.

Sarah wasn't sure what she had expected to see… she had expected to see some old crone of a fae with a scowl on her face and bite in her bark as she forced Sarah to balance books on her head and other such nonsense.

Inside the room, however, was no such thing, but a young girl who looked about ten years old sat on one of the loveseats, waiting patiently with her ankles crossed and her hands folded over the light-yellow skirts of her dress. Her hair was dark brown like Sarah's and she wore it in a long braid that was wrapped around her head like a headband. Her blue eyes looked back at Sarah and a charming little smile came to her face as she slid off the loveseat and gave a little curtsy to her. "Your Majesty," she greeted sweetly.

Sarah wasn't sure how to react to this sweet girl. She didn't know who she was for one, but she also didn't know the proper greeting to give for another. She decided to just be polite and gave the little girl an acknowledging bow of her head. "Hello, I'm sorry but… who are you?"

The smile slipped from the child's face for just a second, but never quite fully returned as the girl looked up at Sarah. "Goodness, that is a greeting that I would expect from a beggar who was touched in the head before I would expect it from any queen."

Sarah at first was utterly shocked by the fact that she was being mocked so by one so young, and even more, because it had seemed like a rather advanced insult for a ten-year-old. That alone instantly told her that she was dealing with a fae child. She also had the ever-creeping fear that somehow, some way that this child…

"Queen Sarah, this is Rally. She will be your etiquette instructor for the next couple days. Rally, this is Jareth's wife, Queen and Champion of the Labyrinth, Sarah."

"That is exactly what I was afraid of," the little girl sighed, rolling her eyes.

 _Took the words right out of her mouth_.

"Turn around so I can look at you then," Rally instructed, "And try not to hunch over as you do."

The corset made it impossible to hunch so she didn't know what the hell the girl was referring to. She glared down at the girl, only to remember her agreement with Jareth and the look of hope that had been on Ishapell's face and complied, turning around in a slow circle while Rally took her in. "Do you normally act so demanding when speaking to queens?" Sarah asked in what she had meant to be a casual tone, but it had only come out clipped and impertinent.

The little girl laughed at that, a sound as sweet as bells ringing. "You are not a queen till I say you are one. I have very little time before I must make that happen and much to do. We will get started immediately. His majesty, Jareth, has given me free rein over you for the next few days. For that time, you may as well consider me your king because you will be doing everything I say, when I say, and how I say. Is that clear?"

Was it a crime down here as well to beat up children?

X

Jareth let out a very long sigh and leaned back in his chair, swinging a leg over the side even though he knew it irked his mother for him to do so when she was talking to him.

Queen Kaleen pursed her lips at her son's behavior. "I am only saying that it would be good of you to visit more often."

"Yes, mother, but you have been making that point since I arrived about two hours ago."

"You _should_ visit more often though. I almost died giving birth to you and the pregnancy itself was hard enough."

Jareth closed his eyes to hide his urge to roll them. Although it was all true, as was the same case with most Fae women and pregnancies, she had been playing this card with him since he was old enough to understand what she was saying. Jareth looked over to the floor next to them where Tallia was playing with his son. They were currently in the East drawing room, Jareth lounging on the chair across from his mother, who was sitting regally on her favorite green loveseat with a cup of hot water and lemon sitting on her lap for her to sip from.

"It's not like I have a lot of free time, mother. Especially these days."

She pursed her lips at him again. "Don't give me that. You know Leona's son, Leo, just invaded and assumed control of the Planes of Sorrow and he visited her just days ago."

"First off the Planes of Sorrow are nothing but an empty wasteland run amuck with low scaly creatures and fire sprites so it's not like he is nearly as busy. Besides, with my son back in my life, I'm trying to spend as much time as possible with him. And it has only been made hard what with the way Sarah has been acting towards me so it's not like…"

He buried his face in his hands again. He hadn't really meant to rant.

His mother leaned forward slightly in her chair, setting her drink down on the little table between them. "Acting towards you?"

Jareth looked down at the floor rather than her eyes. He didn't want to tell her anything, but another part of him desperately craved her advice both as a queen of worth and as his mother. "What do you know of my marriage?" he found himself asking before he could stop.

Kaleen sighed and leaned back in her seat again, looking at her son with both worry and compassion. "Several rumors fly through this castle daily. I have heard everything said about this girl from tale that she runs you around like her own personal servant to talk that she is capable of breaking all men's hearts with a mere glance. Your father has also mentioned some things about her, some of which I will not repeat. He tells me that she was Carrie's stepdaughter for one."

Jareth closed his eyes and braced himself for whatever was about to come from his mother holding that knowledge.

"Jareth, he mentioned that you said that she had returned your son to you by wishing him away to the Underground. Is that true?"

Jareth still couldn't meet her eyes. He didn't have to see them to know that she was staring at him with more knowledge and suspicion than even his father could have ever pieced together. Without a doubt, his mother was considered one of the cleverest Fae's still existing. She had been a great queen for it. It was often joked about among the nobles that if she had only been born male she could have taken over the entire world by her two-thousandth birthday. Jareth didn't doubt it.

Jareth shook his head weakly in answer to her question. "In a manner of speaking but that is not the whole truth no. She never meant to actually wish him back to me. She had no idea who Carrie really was or my son. I had to trick her into it, but when I went to collect my son she defied me, confronted and challenged me."

His mother's lip twitched slightly. She understood his love of games and challenges, testing wits against formidable enemies and friends alike. He took after her in that aspect.

"I made a deal with her to run my Labyrinth in less than thirteen hours and she succeeded," he admitted with shame.

"So, you cheated so that the game would turn out in your favor regardless and you would be able to claim your prizes?" Kaleen smirked.

Jareth nodded his head slowly.

"Then I taught you at least one thing well, my son. Sadly, there is nothing I can do about the fact that you also seem to share your father's weaknesses for women."

Jareth thought about the countless times in the past that his father had raged at his mother because some female or another he was currently bedding had gone missing or had turned up at random times and places with either ghastly sicknesses or scars or even amnesia of who they even were. Besides it being known that his parents were mighty rulers it was also widely known throughout the courts that his father was highly lustful and his mother was wickedly jealous. She never denied having caused anything, but wouldn't admit to any of it either… never entirely anyway.

It was hard to picture a female as frail and delicate looking as his mother ever causing harm to someone else, but he had no doubts about it regardless. The woman had her ways. And besides, he still remembered when he had been real young one of his nannies had hit him for trying to use his magic to force her to act like a dog for his and Mavid's amusement. After that day, she had no longer been his nanny and he had never seen her again. His mother at the time had mentioned that she had decided to move to a farm instead of being his nanny any longer. There was never a farm though.

"I praise you for your stance on wanting a proper mother for Little Jareth, such is both responsible and shows great judgment on your part. But I cannot entirely condone your choice based on the conditioning of the matter. Surely you could have found someone else, someone who isn't a seventeen-year-old human girl who was the stepdaughter to Carrie. Am I wrong in assuming that she wasn't brought here willingly?"

Jareth let out another sigh at his mother's perceptiveness. He doubted even his father realized that Sarah was unwilling to be his wife and his father had met her. "She will be willing. I can make her want me, and I will make her love me too."

His mother narrowed her eyes at him. "Don't be arrogant, Son. Love is just another element that no one will ever gain complete control over."

Jareth couldn't help but chuckle at that. "Now who is being naïve? Love is an element, but so is… fire for example. We can control fire, mother. We use it every day to give us light and warmth."

"You can never have complete control over fire. Fire is a powerful and almost living force that if control is lost for even an instant it can grow and consume until it has destroyed everything around it and keep going like some gluttonous beast with blood on its tongue. You don't control fire. You simply manipulate it, placing it on wood to create a torch or a source of warmth. It is an element because it cannot be controlled nor killed by any force known to the fae or to man; just like love."

"Well, like fire, can love not also be manipulated then?" Jareth smirked.

His mother returned his smile with pride on her face. "Fair enough my son, fair enough. But even that takes some control. Wildfires like your queen are always the hardest to control."

Jareth laughed bitterly at that. "Fair enough indeed."

"Your majesties!" Tallia gasped, grabbing their attention immediately.

Jareth's head spun in the direction of his wet nurse and son and his heart immediately leaped into his throat and stopped beating. Toby was standing up on his own legs, his hands held high in the air by Tallia's hands. Very slowly she let go of his hands and he managed to stay standing on his own, wobbling only very slightly before slowly and uncertainly… he took a step forward on his own.

His first step!

Jareth could hear his mother gasp behind him and shift in her seat. "Precious babe," she sighed in adoration as she watched her grandson walk for the first time.

Jareth sat up, only to drop down to his knees on the floor in front of his chair, Toby just beyond his reach as he held his arms out for his son. "Come to me, Son, come to Daddy."

Toby smiled and took another step forward, teetering slightly once more before regaining his balance and doing it again. His little hands reached out for him and Jareth felt himself melt all over as he welcomed his precious son to him, scooping him up and to him when he started to fall and holding him in his arms lovingly. Oh, how he wished Sarah had been able to see that. "That's my strong little male, my most precious son," he whispered to him adoringly.

"Da-da!" Toby squealed.

Jareth couldn't stop grinning as he held his son. On the floor nearby, Tallia was also smiling softly as she looked upon the king and the young prince.

A soft noise caught Jareth's attention and he looked over at his mother, who was dabbing her eyes with her handkerchief so that her face paints wouldn't smear. Her eyes were shiny with her tears as she stared in adulation at the scene in front of her.

Jareth cleared his throat. "Tallia go prepare a bath for my son."

The serving fae nodded her head and hurried from the room, taking the hint. Jareth turned and passed his son off to his mother, who happily took her grandson from him. "I'm sorry to become emotional like this," she apologized, "It's just… well you know, seeing my grandchild growing. I didn't think I would ever get the chance to…"

Jareth couldn't say anything back, simply nodding his head. That his son was alive and he could be in his life was truly a blessing; a miracle even.

X

"Try again."

Sarah let out a frustrated growl under her breath. "But I have been trying for close to an hour now, I just can't do it."

Rally was no fae child… she was obviously some sort of spawn of Satan or something, Sarah had decided.

After meeting the girl Mavid had left them to their lessons, wondering off to take over Jareth's responsibilities for the day. Ishapell and Clora had, of course, stayed with Sarah, but they would just be observing the lessons rather than participating as well since according to Rally 'I am being paid handsomely to educate you, your majesty, and since I will be lucky if I can teach you how to so much as properly sigh before lunch I do not have time to focus on them for one thing. For another, I am not being paid anything extra to pay them any mind'.

For the entire day, she had been going through one pointless lesson to the next with Rally. First, they had tried proper curtsies and although Sarah hadn't been able to figure out what she had been doing wrong Rally had insisted that she was a hopeless hunchbacked mess. She had then had Mavid order some of the goblins to go down to the stable and bring up one of those wooden beams used to rest saddles on and had instructed Sarah to literally bend over backward onto it and stay like that for ten minutes!

Naturally, Sarah had refused… until Ishapell had started tearing up and asked her very nicely to please just humor Rally. Sarah could just kill Jareth for letting Ishapell know what was at stake. Now instead of going with her instincts to storm out of the room after screaming at the girl she had someone counting on her to go through with all this. Granted that Ishapell and she were not best friends or anything, she still hated feeling that she was letting someone down. When she had run the Labyrinth, it had been both her love and determination to not let Toby down that had kept her going. It was doing the same now.

As humiliating and stupid as it was, she had bent over backward, literally. After the ten minutes was over she almost felt like she physically couldn't slouch and Rally had decided her posture was acceptable enough to move on with the lessons.

They had covered greetings, different postures for different activities- who could have guessed that there was a proper way to sit down and hold a book?!- the "five most important facial expressions to wear while around company", how to be graceful while fainting, the different ways walking can express your mood without appearing any less poised. During meals Rally had basically just given her review lessons- she made Jareth and Mavid's training feel like playtime in the sandbox… the more lessons she was put through the more Sarah had come to realize two things about them. One, being that they all seemed designed to just ensure that no matter what was happening or what she was doing that a female continued to remain elegant and beautiful rather than being emotional or real. It was just doll-training, really. It was sick. And she also realized that the more she learned about how she was supposed to act that it seemed to be what Ishapell just always did, making her suspect that maybe she wasn't the only one to have been put through such humiliating training as this.

After they had gotten done going through Sarah's closet and Rally had sorted everything out according to occasions that it would be best to wear everything for Sarah had been beat and ready for sleep. It was starting to grow a little darker out as it was. The lessons weren't over yet. Currently, they were all gathered in the music room. Sarah had never been in here before but noticed that a lot of the instruments inside seemed to have been kept in immaculate condition, unlike everything else in the Labyrinth. The only thing that was the slightest bit beaten up and worn around the edges was the same thing that immediately grabbed her attention because it was so out of place among all the other instruments both familiar and foreign. Sitting right next to the drum set and an odd-looking horn that she had never seen in the Aboveground before was an electric guitar. It was beautiful but Sarah couldn't begin to think of what it was doing here in the Underground. They didn't even have electricity.

Rally had brought them in here for use of the piano though. She told Ishapell to sit down at it and then had informed Sarah that she wanted to hear her scales. As soon as Sarah had started with the whole "do-re-mi" Rally had stomped hard on Sarah's foot, causing her screech like a banshee. It had been Clora who had held Sarah back from going after the smaller fae.

"Well, at least you can hit high notes apparently," she had scoffed. "You don't speak your scales you sing them, none of this 'do-re-mi' nonsense. I want to hear the notes themselves. Ishapell will play a note on the keyboard for you. Just try to match the tone as clearly as you can."

It was proving a far more difficult task than she had thought.

"Try again!" Rally insisted.

"This is silly. Why do I have to learn any of this?!"

"This is not silly, you impertinent girl."

"You're calling me girl?!"

"You are the youngest one here and of the female gender so the title is appropriate."

Sarah frowned at that. "Just how old are you?"

There was a pregnant pause in the room.

"I will overlook the rudeness of your question this time in hopes that by knowing my age maybe you can move past my outward appearance to start showing me the respect my true age demands. I am currently just short of being seven-hundred and seventy-six Winters old."

 _Talk about looking great for your age_.

Sarah turned to Clora. "Will Toby still look that young when he is seven-hundred and seventy-six?"

Clora chuckled at that.

"My appearance is my own personal decision," Rally continued, her tone sharper. "Now can we continue with the lesson?"

"I don't understand though," Sarah protested.

Rally rolled her eyes. "Of course, you do not. Humans are so thick headed, can hardly teach themselves to speak coherently. Jareth's last wife was the same way, but even she was not this difficult."

"You did this with Karen too?!"

Rally's head tilted just the slightest bit, her way of showing confusion apparently.

"She is referring to Carrie," Clora smirked.

Rally nodded then. "Of course. Granted she was much more willing and I was not working with such dramatic time restraints, but yes, I tutored Carrie on our ways as well. I have tutored numerous females; Fae, human, and occasionally elf. Humans are always the hardest to reason with," she said, giving Sarah a rather distasteful glance. "Back to the issue being that this lesson is not at all 'silly'. In fact, it is one of the most important ones you must learn. To the fae there is no greater show of affection than to sing to those close to you. How will you ever be able to show that kind of great respect to your husband if you don't learn to sing?"

Sarah glared at the- okay, not younger- shorter fae. "I can sing well enough already and I have no intentions of ever singing anything to Jareth!"

There was another pregnant silence, except this time it was much longer, and much more awkward as all the females exchanged uncomfortable looks.

"What?"

"You shame both Jareth and yourself when you say something like that," Rally bluntly informed her.

She couldn't even believe this girl. Jareth could stand to be shamed a little. But it shamed her to not want to sing songs of love and affection to him?! This world was the most backward… messed up… insane place anyone could have ever been kidnapped to.

"I think it only fair to tell you that I will be informing his majesty of this."

Sarah felt her stomach drop at that. Just one stupid comment and just like that Jareth was going to be furious with her again. She looked behind her to see that Ishapell's face had fallen as well as her stomach at the happy little revelation. She had failed after all and she had been doing so well. Sucking up everything that Rally had dealt out during the day. Now that it was just starting to get dark she had gone and opened her big mouth.

Well if she was going to be in trouble now there was no reason that Sarah could see to continue with the lesson. Without so much as a word or glance to anyone she turned and stormed out of the room, needing as much space from all of them as was possible. She hated it here, where she had no real friends and everyone reported everything about her to Jareth. In ways both big and small everyone had told on her to him at some point; Mavid, Ishapell, Tallia… now Rally would just be adding to that list.

She desperately missed her friends, Hoggle, Ludo and Sir Didymus. As badly as she wanted to see them again she had refrained from asking Jareth about them. After her defeat of him just before he had claimed Toby and herself she had talked to her friends, seen them in her mirror. She knew that they had been safe from harm and happy at the time even though she had left them in the Goblin Castle. Since she had heard no one speak of them at all she had to assume that somehow, they had gotten away and were safe. She didn't want to bring them up to Jareth and put them in harm's way by accident. Besides, they had been happy to know she was home safe with her family… a part of her wanted them to go on believing that for as long as they could if they hadn't already heard about her return.

Oh, how she missed them.

Sarah thought about going out into the garden, but the fact that it was growing dark out left her feeling uneasy about it so she wondered around the halls aimlessly for a little while, thankful that no one had come after her yet. She felt like Ishapell was the last person she could face right now. She had missed her pet like Sarah missed her friends and Sarah had just blown the fae's chance to get to see Tarik.

"Your highness?" Sarah jumped and looked up to see she had wandered over to the medical wing. The healer… she couldn't recall his name and lord forbid anyone to wear a name badge around here… was standing by the door to his clinic, looking slightly surprised and confused to see her standing in the hall. "May I ask what is wrong?"

Sarah took in the elf in front of her. Unlike the pointed faces that everyone else seemed to possess around here, his was of a slight rounder shape, the scant baby fat that remained in his cheeks making him appear younger- not that she for one minute thought him to be young, especially after meeting Rally. His hair was long and straight and he was quite the carrot top, all shades of yellows and oranges mixed in his hair. His skin was even paler than Jareth's and his ears were more noticeably pointed. He was only about as tall as her so she was right at eye level to be able to see that his green eyes held in them genuine concern over her current state of unease.

"I'm just…" she was ready to make up some nonchalant excuse for her wondering around the halls, but something in her crumbled and she let out a shaky breath. "I'm going to be in a lot of trouble once Jareth returns. He left me to go see his parents today and this female, Rally, comes here and I had to do everything she said all day. I have never been so humiliated in my life than I was made during practically each of our lessons today but I put up with it all! I did my best and held my tongue and everything. It was the hardest thing ever. I don't know if you know her but she is a real snot. Then just now, after everything I went through we were in the middle of a music lesson and now I'm in trouble just because I told her that I never want to sing to Jareth. It's just not fair!"

She wasn't sure why she had spilled her guts to this elf, but she did feel slightly better for it. Something about the understanding and caring look in his eyes just made him seem easy to talk to. It was a good quality for a healer to have she guessed. She forced herself to calm down a little since she was on the verge of tearing up in her frustration. "I'm sorry. I believe your name has escaped me."

"Aboris, Miss," he said with a bow. "You haven't had a very good day at all, have you?"

Sarah simply shook her head because she didn't trust her voice to not crack now.

"Would you like something to help you calm down?"

Sarah thought about refusing for a moment but then thought better of it. She could hardly remember the last time she had felt relaxed and he was, as far as she had seen and been told, a competent healer. She nodded her head weakly and allowed him to usher her into his rooms and over to the white cot that Jareth had been on the last time she had been in here.

Aboris moved past her to riffle through some cabinets, pulling out supplies before coming back over to her, an odd shaped but short molded glass figure in one hand and a corked bottle in the other. He uncorked the bottle and Sarah watched as he shook out a little bit of the contents onto a tray next to him. Sarah sat and watched in curiosity as he started stuffing some of the crumpled plant-like stuff onto one end of the glass piece.

It dawned on her that it was a pipe and she immediately stiffened. "Oh, I don't smoke. Don't want to become addicted you know?"

He smiled up at her politely. "Don't worry, this isn't addictive like substances in your Aboveground. And it's a very powerful relaxant so you only will need a little. Elf moss works wonders though for stress and pain relief."

He handed the pipe to her and pointed out which end to smoke from. Sarah was hesitant but did as he instructed and put her mouth against the hole, covering it with her lips. He struck a match and brought it over the moss. "Suck in,"

Sarah did and watched as the fire got pulled down into the moss, which turned red and flared. She was so busy watching it that she didn't notice till it was too late that she had taken in too much and started coughing like she would drop a lung. Aboris handed her a glass of water and although it didn't stop the coughing it did help her enough to where she could breathe. "Just try not to take in so much so fast," he instructed her. "Try again, and this time don't seal your lips around the opening but allow some air to flow in along with the smoke. A soft breath in is all it should take."

She tried it about three more times, able to do it without coughing anymore.

She didn't notice any effects it had on her till she turned her head to look at something next to her and the rest of the room took a second to catch up. She felt… well, she wasn't entirely sure how to describe it. It was a little like a pain killer for the emotions as well as the body, making everything fuzzier, taking the edge off. She also found herself hardly able to look away from the fire that burned in the fireplace nearby. It wasn't that it was more beautiful than normal, but something about the flames just demanded and held the attention. _Am I high?!_ she thought to herself with some surprise.

She had known plenty of kids at her high school that had done pot before, and there was talk of a few that were into other things too, but she had never even really contemplated trying it herself. The elf moss wasn't too bad though, aside from the coughing it left a rather pleasant earthy taste in her mouth and she was no longer upset, almost the opposite, and the whole world felt a little… softer for lack of a better word. She was sure at this point that she was rather out of her mind. She couldn't for the life of her stop herself from smiling at that thought. It kind of felt like nothing could hurt her. "Can I have some more of that?"

Aboris smiled kindly but alas shook his head "no". "You won't need anymore tonight, but if you do need more in the future I can oblige you." He looked down into the jar he kept the stuff in wistfully before placing the cork back inside of it. "I imagine you probably will have many nights that you will be needing it."

Sarah found at that, but she only felt confused instead of upset. "What do you mean by that?"

He looked up at her, surprised in himself that he had said it at all. "Nothing offensive your highness, it's just… it's no secret in this castle as to the relationship between yourself and the king."

Sarah genially laughed at that. "That's a nice way of saying everyone knows that we don't get along at all."

After looking slightly embarrassed Aboris gave a nod of confirmation. "Indeed, I suppose so. All I meant was that that's how it was towards the end there with Jareth's last wife too. I had just started here maybe a year before Carrie managed to leave and it was one of the hardest years of my life." His face grew dark as he slipped further into his own mind at the remembrance.

Sarah set the pipe down next to her, her attention fully on the elf in front of her. "What do you mean? What did he do to her? Did he fight with her?"

Aboris let out a sigh. "It's not my place to say, besides it's confidential."

"How confidential can it be if everyone knows about it but me?!" Sarah whined, "Aboris please, I want to know- _just what Jareth is capable of having done to me_." she cut herself off rather than allow the rest of her sentence to slip out.

Aboris was silent, still staring off into the past.

Sarah couldn't help but press. "When she would run away and he would get her back, would he beat her?"

Aboris snorted at that but there was absolutely no mirth to it. "Maybe that's all he would have done if he hadn't just about hated her at that point. No, the first time she ever ran away Mavid had tracked her down like a dog and located her in a cottage where a farming couple had hidden her. He made everyone go outside and then burned the place to the ground before bringing her back to Jareth. I tended to her after it was all over, but I could tell that he had allowed Mavid to punish her as well. She told me that Mavid had tied her down, then had whipped her rigorously all over her exposed body with a cat o' nine tails. Afterward, Jareth had allowed him to brand her."

"Brand her?!" Sarah asked, feeling knots twisting about in her stomach at just the thought of the whipping.

"There is a mark on the back of Mavid's neck, I'm sure you've seen it."

"The tattoo?"

"Yes. Here it is referred to as a branding. It shows that Mavid is a direct servant to Jareth. The wet nurse, Tallia has one too hidden under her hair on her neck, but it is different from Mavid's since she is not a permanent servant here. When Jareth had no more need of her services she will be returned to her master. Anyway, only servants and slaves wear such marks. But Jareth had Mavid tattoo it onto her anyway, on the back of her leg. She didn't even realize she had it till I informed her. She had passed out from the blood loss during the whipping and had been unconscious through it." Aboris rubbed his eyes as if to rub away the visual memory of it all. "I don't recall ever seeing her cry so much."

Sarah thought she might be sick. Was that what was in store for her if she failed to get away? What if Jareth found out she was planning on escaping? "She tried again though."

Aboris nodded his head. "Several times. Each time, however, Mavid found her, destroyed the properties of anyone harboring her, and brought her back. It just became easier for him each time because anyone who so much as saw her would report as much for fear of what would happen to their homes and anything they owned if they didn't. She had to keep trying though, Jareth's hatred toward her seemed to be ever growing and I personally had no more doubts than she did that if she didn't eventually escape he would have eventually caused her death.

"The last time that she was brought back, she almost did die from her punishments." Aboris took in a shaky breath, not meeting Sarah's eyes.

Sarah barely even realized she was speaking as the words left her mouth. "What did they do to her?"

Aboris was silent for a spell. So long, in fact, Sarah wondered if he actually intended to answer her. She opened her mouth to say something just as he began to speak. "I don't know all the details, and I didn't press for them. You wouldn't have either if you had seen her. I was able to gather from both what she did tell me and what I was able to figure out from examining her, that they had chained up her wrists, hanging her from the ceiling. She had fist-like marks all over her abdomen, I'm guessing probably from Mavid. She informed me that after the physical violence had been done to her, that Jareth forced himself upon her… and so did Mavid.

"Mavid brought her to me probably just minutes before she would have died from the internal bleeding."

Sarah felt physically ill. Her heart ached for her stepmother. "He's such a monster," she choked out past her own horror and disgust at what Jareth had done to that woman.

Aboris nodded in agreement. "Most would say different, but of course none of them had to see the aftermath of the punishments she was put through."

"Most would say different?! How could anyone not think Jareth was pure evil for doing something like that? What could she have possibly done to warrant everyone hating her so much?" she demanded, practically jumping up from the cot.

"We do not discuss it," Aboris informed her, still unwilling to meet her eyes. "In these parts, we simply refer to what happened as the tragedies. It's considered taboo to even mention it. I'm sorry but I can't tell you."

Sarah was about to rant and rave at the elf, but everything stilled to a dead halt in the room as a familiar and cool voice penetrated the air. "But you've already told her so much, Aboris. Why stop now when it's just getting good?"

Sarah and Aboris both spun around to the door, where Jareth and Mavid both were standing, glaring daggers at the elf.

X

[DUN- DUN- DUN!

Also, props to any of you who look at the names of characters enough to have caught onto the fact that all the underground women share the same letters just jumbled around in their names.


	17. Chapter 17

Beta is The Art of Suicide

X

Sarah sat frozen in her seat like a deer caught in the headlights. A slight tremor of fear rolled through her at the building terror of what would happen next as Jareth and Mavid both continued to glare at the elf, who had backed up several paces from them. Aboris dropped into a bow so low he bent over double and stayed in that position. "Your majesty… I… I didn't-"

"Save your voice, Aboris," Jareth snapped, "You've talked plenty tonight."

Sarah trembled again when Jareth's eyes shifted to her. He took in the state of her, his eyes raking over her once, then shifting to the pipe and elf moss, then back over to Aboris. "Mavid, I am going to take Sarah back to her room. Would you be kind enough to remind our healer of the virtues of confidentiality?"

Mavid nodded his head and stood aside so that Jareth could move into the room and over to where Sarah sat on the couch. Sarah could guess what would happen if she left Mavid alone with Aboris and despite her fear of what Jareth already planned to do to her she resisted Jareth as he reached out for her. "Jareth, that's not fair! You can't have Mavid hurt him. He only told me anything because I pressured him into it. It wasn't his fault. it was mine… so any guilt lies with me. As his queen, didn't he have to tell me? So, he can't be blamed for that! You can't let Mavid torture or scar or rip out his tongue or anything like that! Please!"

Jareth let out a slow sigh. "Sarah, don't start with the dramatics. Mavid will not do anything of the sort. Am I mad at you for going around asking questions? No, it was to be expected. It wasn't, however, anyone else's place to answer them for you," he said, shooting another look at Aboris, who shuddered under that gaze.

The euphoria of the elf moss had for the most part been snapped out of her, but she still couldn't help blurting out, "It's not like I can talk to **you** about anything."

Jareth's expression sharpened and his eyes narrowed in both his anger and hurt. Sarah didn't even have time to react when he suddenly leaned forward and placed a firm and particularly painful kiss against her lips, seizing her wrist in his hand. "It's thoughtless comments like that that are going to get you in big trouble one of these days, Precious."

He didn't give her more time to protest, pulling her by the wrist from the cot and with him out the door and through the halls. Sarah made a feeble attempt to pull against his grasp so that Aboris wouldn't be alone with Mavid, but Jareth gave a sharp yank right away to stop her.

Sarah went along in silence. After what Aboris had told her about what Jareth was capable of she couldn't help but worry more for herself than for the healer at the moment. She looked at the back of Jareth's head, his hair just as wild as ever and growing longer. His frame was lean, but she knew firsthand the kind of power and strength it held. He went around like everyone else in this messed up world thinking that rape and violence and death was just another part of life. Still, even he had to know the terrible ways he had wronged Carrie. If he could do all those things to her and not feel at all remorseful for them… he was indeed a monster.

X

After he had returned home Jareth had been greeted by everyone… other than the one that he most wanted to see. He had pulled Mavid aside as quickly as possible, dismissing the other ladies to inquire about the day. Before he had left the castle to travel to his parents' estate he asked his trusted friend to use his abilities to keep an eye on things there as well as he could.

Jareth wouldn't have liked to leave one of his goblins alone with that Rally female, much less Sarah. So, he had told Mavid to keep watch the entire time in secrecy and to intervene if it looked like Sarah was about to be physically hurt or emotionally scarred in any way.

After he had gotten a breather in, Mavid told him about the music lesson, about what she had said and Rally telling her that she would report to Jareth about it so Sarah had stormed out. Jareth could in no way say that he was happy about the comment, any more than he could have claimed to be angered by it. No, at this point it was too expected for her to say something so thoughtless and hurtful, even though he had been so nice to her lately. Mavid had been stuck in the shadows of the music room and wasn't able to follow her for being discovered.

It hadn't taken them long to find her in the medical wing, that stupid elf running his mouth off to her and telling her about Jareth's relationship with his ex-wife in just about as brutal a way as he could have. Jareth was positively seething as he and Mavid both listened to the doctor go on and on. At first, Mavid had stepped forward to silence him, but for reason's he wasn't even entirely sure of, he had stopped Mavid from interrupting. He warned everyone -goblins included- about what would happen if any of them saw fit to give Sarah information about either of his past relationships. Yet here that infernal elf was babbling his head off as Sarah only continued to look more and more horrified.

Had he lied about any of it? No. But there was more to the story and it wasn't nearly as cut and dry as the fool had made it sound.

It wasn't that Jareth didn't want her to know about what had happened… entirely. He would have answered any of her questions had she just asked him herself. After all, who better to both know and tell just what had happened other than someone who had been there? She hadn't asked him though and had never even tried. He had had to catch her sneaking around the castle and asking everyone else what they thought had happened.

Like any of them knew the whole story.

Jareth was also wounded by the way that the disgust had returned to Sarah's gaze every time the elf had said mentioned him and now that she was staring right at him like she had back in the beginning. Had she asked he would have answered her. He wanted her to feel like she could come to him if she needed something, anything.

Jareth brought them to the main bedroom and closed the door behind him but didn't lock it, hoping that by doing so maybe Sarah would calm down a little since as it was she was starting to tremble again. Why did she always have to treat him like some sort of unstable loon?! He had yet to do anything but act accordingly to her own behaviors.

Jareth took her over to the bed since it was really the only place in the room to sit down. He stayed standing in front of her after she had settled onto the edge hesitantly. She looked down at the floor rather than up at him, obviously anxious. Jareth reached up to run his hand through his hair and she jumped.

"For goodness sakes, Sarah," his hissed, "I'm not going to strike you. Stop acting so mindless."

She glared down at the floor at that, heated by his words. "Well then is it true? Everything that Aboris said about you and what you did to Carrie, are you going to deny any of it?" she demanded.

"No."

She stiffened again like she hadn't expected him to ever answer her so directly. Or maybe she had just been hoping for a different answer.

Jareth let out a frustrated sigh and sat down on the bed next to her, biting back with all his might to keep from yelling at her when she scooted slightly away from him. Through force of will, he let it go this one time. "I'm not sure I heard everything that he had told you, but what I did hear wasn't too far from the truth of what I did to that woman."

She stared at him like she could hardly comprehend what kind of monster he was or something.

He gripped his temper by the reins in order to keep from going off on her for giving him a look like that. "Sarah, you don't know the whole story. You have no room to judge me, and most who do rule in my favor, I will have you know."

She just shook her head at that. "I can't fathom how."

Jareth stood up and moved away from the bed in case he should lash out at her. Everything was so simple for her. Good and bad, right and wrong, black and white; in Sarah's head, they were all so easy to distinguish between and grey areas were nonexistent. If he told her the whole story she probably wouldn't even care and would still hold the idea of him being some evil villain from one of her stories come to life in a death-grip lest she glimpse an actual median where people could be both good and bad and do things both right and wrong… all people. Even to the fae there were no exceptions from that rule any more than any humans were.

A serial killer who had over one hundred victims could still do good things like volunteer work or something just as much as a devoted man of the churches could do bad things like stealing from the collection plates for gambling debts. No one could ever be purely good or purely bad, there had to be a balance there, even if the scales leaned one way or the other. Those scales couldn't tip. In the Aboveground such was seen as "human nature" to be capable of both good and bad things. That was an incorrect assessment. These laws were universal.

Some people have trouble understanding this. His young wife had the hardest time accepting that they existed, the shades between black and white. It irked him to no end.

"You wouldn't understand," he sighed finally and truthfully. "But then, why would you?"

X

Sarah said nothing, just continued to sit there on the bed, sizing him up. Finally, she let out a sigh of her own. "You mentioned once that your marriage to Carrie was good in the beginning. Was she… willing?"

Jareth chuckled at that. "Are you wondering if I in anyway forced her to come here and be my bride? I didn't. She came here of her own violation with every intention of being my wife. I mentioned before that she was very much the dreamer, just like you, so the thought of making a wish and being swept away to an enchanted world to be a queen and have a handsome fae king to rule by… well, she was an amazing romantic and it wasn't something she could refuse. So, we married, had the large ceremony and all that. It was all built on romantic ideals and the marriage itself was much the same for the longest time. Truly we got along very well together."

There was a long pause in which Sarah began to wonder if Jareth would even continue. She was utterly disgusted by the things she knew he was capable of. She just couldn't understand what could drive someone, even someone like the fae standing in front of her with his arms crossed in front of him, to do that to another, especially someone he had very much cared for and even possibly loved at some point.

"But?" Sarah coaxed.

Jareth sighed again and went over to the wall, leaning against it and keeping his arms crossed like he was holding himself rather than just trying to look imposing. "I was very good to her Sarah, possibly even better than I could ever be to you. I asked you to love, fear, and obey me, but I asked none of this from Carrie. She gave them all willingly enough in her own ways. I was happy just to give and give to her because growing up being rather spoiled… a lot more than even you were… she was happy just to received and so was good to me in return. There was only one thing I wanted from her… the one thing that was proving more difficult to obtain."

"A baby," Sarah gasped. The same thing he still wanted from her.

Jareth nodded his head solemnly.

"So, you started being cruel to her because she couldn't get pregnant?!"

Jareth scowled at her. "Do you ever grow tired of being wrong? Let me finish since you can only jump to conclusions rather than piece anything together for yourself."

Sarah wanted to snap at him but kept quiet to hear what he had to say for himself.

Jareth went back to his story. "A pregnancy from her wasn't impossible, but it was highly unlikely. Once word got out that I had taken as a wife a human that was just as reproduction-challenged as the fae women here… well, things got harder for us both. In the eyes of the court, I was considered shamed and she was considered less than useless. Not that I really cared what those fools had to say, but it didn't make things easier. We were both trying for a child though so I was willing to bare it all. After all, how could I hold against her something that she couldn't help when she was at least trying. Eventually, she admitted to me, however, that she didn't want to ever have any children.

"That was all I ever wanted in return from her. She didn't want to bare any though." Jareth looked up at Sarah then. "Do you know what she told me her reasoning was for not wanting to have any children? She said she didn't want to lose her figure! That was the only reason that vain, spoiled bint could give me, but oh how she hung onto it."

Jareth let out another sigh. "When I found out that she had been buying contraceptive pills at the Black Magic Market on the sly… well… let's just say that I wasn't at all pleased with her and I threw them all out. After that, I'm not ashamed to admit that I started slipping her medicines to help encourage a pregnancy through her food. After what she had done, it seemed more than fair. She might have suspected, but she never found out for sure. A good forty years went by in our marriage before she finally took with child."

Sarah sat on the edge of the bed, not daring to interrupt. She was too focused on the story he was telling her.

"Sarah, I must say now that Carrie, for all her charms and beauty was possibly the vainest and most pompous female I have ever known. She didn't care about the baby one way or another. She would have probably been just fine in having it as long as it didn't ruin her figure. I've come to learn that every female, no matter what shape or size always has a part of their body that they favor more than anything else about them, whether it be eye color or the shape of their fingers. She was particularly proud of her narrow waist, you noticed that right after she gave birth to my son in the Aboveground that she worked more to get her shape back than she did with Tob-er Little Jareth. Eventually though, like women in her state do, she started to show."

The smallest smile came to Jareth's lips before disappearing as quickly as it had come. "She wouldn't stop wearing those corsets, but the more she grew the tighter she would try to wear them. I had them all taken out of her room right away for fear of what could happen. She kept one hidden from me though."

The silence in the room seemed to stretch out for forever. Jareth just stood against the wall as he had before like time had frozen him in that second and just wouldn't continue.

Sarah both wanted him to continue and didn't want him to. She hoped she was wrong in her assumption of where this was leading.

Finally, Jareth moved from against the wall, pacing slowly first one way then the other before going over and sitting down on the bed with her, but this time it was him who kept a good foot of space between them. He refused to meet her eyes, but even from just what she could see of his own eyes she could see the pain filling and shining out of them. He let out another slow and somewhat shaky sigh like he didn't trust his voice. "She lost the baby."

Sarah didn't know what to say to him, or what to do for him. She was torn between still thinking him a cruel monster for what he had done and wanted to comfort the immense pain that was coming off of him. She knew how much he loved Toby. "Devastated" couldn't have been a strong enough word for how he must have taken the news that after forty years of trying for a child he had just lost one because Carrie was worried about her appearance.

Jareth turned his head to look at her and she was rocked to her core at the unshed tears she saw resting in his eyes. She had never seen Jareth so close to tears before; had hardly fathomed that he was capable of such things. But there they were, for her to see. "She never once cried about it. Never felt bad about it. She was back to wearing corsets within the next couple days. She actually had the gall to suggest to me that it was just a sign that maybe we shouldn't have any kids. That was the first time I ever struck her. I rendered her unconscious from a single hit. I even contemplated leaving her there on the floor, but in the end, I took her to the healer that worked here at the time.

"His name was Corrous and he knew all about the pregnancy- and the miscarriage." Jareth looked back down to the floor, leaning forward to rest his elbows on his knees. "I had to demand and eventually even beg him to see to her. He didn't want to, and at first had flat out refused. You see, children are the most precious things known to the fae world. It's considered the greatest blessing for a female to be with child. So, causing the death of a child… even unintentionally is about the worst offense imaginable. With how rare and precious children are… for her to throw that all away so that she wouldn't have to show for about five months… she was deeply and instantly hated by the fae community. There is hardly a fae in this world that wouldn't trade away everything that they owned and even things that they didn't in exchange for a child, so it cut everyone deeply to hear what she had done. It didn't cut me though, or my parents. It gutted us. I had never felt so empty before in my life. Since it had been caused by elements she had full control over since she could have stopped wearing her corsets at any time, death would have been the expected punishment for her.

"Despite what she had done, what she had said, I still begged him to treat her. Even Mavid told me how weak and foolish I was to have done that for her, so you can imagine what others thought of me for it. But more than anything they looked down upon and hated Carrie. I didn't hate her though.

"Perhaps I didn't love her as much as I had, and I was less giving towards her. Certainly, we seemed to argue a bit more, but I didn't hate her."

"But then why-"

"Let me finish, Sarah," he hushed her. "It had been hard enough to reach pregnancy the first time, and with how that turned out I thought it best not to try specifically for having children anymore, a most difficult decision in itself. Our relationship just never fully recovered after that and as the years dragged on things just got worse. I started to resent her more and more for what she wouldn't give me and she in turn resented me for what I wanted from her.

"She started to resent me so much for it that she began to pull away from me; slowly at first, maybe choosing not to follow my orders here or disregarding something I had told her there. It was only a matter of time and I can hardly even say I was surprised when I first found out that she was calling on other males. Not to say our relationship was so strained at that point that we wouldn't also be together, we were. I didn't care if she wanted to bed the entire population of the fae, just as long as pleasure was the only exchanges between her partners and herself. She was my wife and my queen and her feelings were for me alone so I didn't see the harm in it.

"The resentment for me was growing in her though, and it wasn't long before it became clear that she was doing it in hopes of hurting me. When she saw that it wasn't she started getting spiteful about it, making it so that her lovers would accidentally cross my path after it was over somehow, and then she took one to my bed and I finally stopped them all from coming to her. It only gave her another reason to resent me and my feelings towards her had quickly deteriorated. Still, I was overjoyed once more when news came that she was pregnant once again and all signs pointed to it being my child."

Jareth glared down at the floor then and Sarah felt a chill shoot up her arms from the coldness that seemed to radiate from him. "Can you guess how Carrie felt about such news, Sarah? I think that by this part of the story you can assume correctly."

Sarah felt like she was going to be sick all over again. Her stomach felt tight at the thought. Yeah, she could guess.

Jareth growled out through his teeth, "The same day I found out that she was three months along with child was the same day she happened to trip down a staircase. She swore up and down for days that it was an accident, but no one believed her, and neither could I. She never even once cried about it." Jareth's head shot up and Sarah couldn't hold back the startled gasp that escaped her at the fury and hatred that showed in Jareth's eyes just from the memory. He had told her several times that she never wanted him to hate her, now she truly believed it.

"I had given her all the love I could, and she had taken it all and thrown it away. She had succeeded in killing another one of my children, losses that are still mourned by both myself and those close to me. It wasn't only me that she had hurt with her actions Sarah, but everyone that had ever had contact with her; Mavid, her friends in court, her serving ladies, my parents, even the goblins of this castle held ill will towards her. I had nothing left to give that foul woman, except my hatred. I gave it to her with as much passion as I had my love too. I cut her off from everything, sent away all my fae servants save for Mavid. I did everything I could think of to make her feel just as unhappy as she had caused me to suffer through every single day because of what she had done. I had no children, a wife whom I hated beyond words, and for it all, I was considered either a laughing stock or a great pity by all who I knew.

"Yes, she started trying to escape me then, and every time Mavid brought her back to me. And I would punish her greatly, not for running away, but for allowing herself to get caught. Every time she was caught, she left destruction behind her. Good people, some subjects of my own kingdom suffered because of her stupidity. She didn't care about any of them either, never once did she cry to me about their losses or stopped running to others for help despite what she knew would happen to any that did. I would make her suffer for their sakes as well. I wanted her gone, but could not find a way to be rid of her myself. Most of this I didn't even realize till she finally had escaped me."

"But, she was pregnant again, when she got away," Sarah confirmed, her voice shaky.

Jareth nodded. "Indeed, she was. She had escaped and sought out-"

He stopped and glanced over at Sarah like he had caught himself from giving away too much. He didn't know that she already knew all about Carrie's escape. "I found out after she escaped that she was with child at the time. I was sure that she would do away with this one too. I watched in my crystals for it to happen."

"But she kept the babe."

Jareth nodded his head slowly. "You can imagine my surprise and confusion." He was silent then for a long time, brows knitted together in deep thought. "When she had been with me she'd made it clear she wanted no children. Then, after she was free of me…"

Jareth's voice cracked and then he was completely still and silent as he gathered himself through sheer willpower. "I had to make sure it was my child though because although it couldn't have been your father's there was still the chance that it could have been Mavid's from the last time I had had her punished. She had escaped me just short of a month after her punishment, and the timing was perfect for my son to have been conceived at that time. That's where you came in. Once I had my child back I had Aboris run a paternity check on the babe. Sure enough, it was mine and not Mavid's, and I wasn't about to let the one and only child I had from that awful woman go when she had already cost me too much."

The silence filled the air till it practically roared at them, and Sarah couldn't help but feel… sorry for Jareth. Yeah what he did was still very wrong and she felt for Carrie to have been put through all that, but he had obviously been deeply hurt too. She could hardly imagine it; Karen, the woman she knew, so callously forcing miscarriages upon herself like that for something as trivial as vanity. But then also Sarah could see it. She could clearly remember how primped and preened Karen was at most every second of the day. She didn't like one strand of hair to be out of place. She'd had Toby a tad prematurely because she refused to stop exercising during the last stages of the pregnancy. Thankfully Toby had been just fine.

She felt so confused by all of this. She didn't know how to react to anything. One side of her wanted to console Jareth for the pain that he still deeply felt, but another part of her wanted to shout at him about how wrong it was of him to sink to Karen's level out of spite and work to make her life a living hell like he had.

They were two people that had hurt each other as badly as they could because they were hurting. She was just one more person out of the many that had been caught in the crosshairs.

Jareth abruptly got up from the bed and did a short pace around the room, rubbing at his face with his hands. "I- I'm just going to-"

He didn't even finish his sentence as he hurried out the door, leaving her alone to her thoughts as he ran from his own. Sarah's head was spinning. She didn't know what to think, what to do. She wanted to sleep, wanted to scream, wanted to cry, wanted to run. She wanted-

She didn't know what she wanted, but before she could think about it she was on her feet and hurrying out the door into the hall. "Jareth!" she shouted out. She found him on the stairs, having paused in his steps and turned back to face her. She didn't even stop as she hurried down the steps after him, tears already falling from her eyes as she wrapped her arms around him and hung on tight like her life depended on him. She couldn't bring herself to love him no, hardly even like him really, but she did feel for him and could cry for him.

But more than that was that right now she felt profoundly horrible about herself. So much so in fact that she had no choice but to seek out comfort from the one person that made her feel like she did. His strong and protective arms circled her and held her just as tightly against him and she couldn't stop the tears from flowing freely.

Karen had hurt him so badly, and now she was going to do the same. She would take Toby from him in just a few days' time, and he would be left heartbroken and miserable and torn apart. He would hate her for it just like he hated Karen. Never mind the fear she had felt in the face of the shadows of his hatred; for reasons she refused to examine too closely, she just couldn't stand the prospect of him hating her. It hurt her to just think of it. She had never in her life wronged anybody as badly as what she was about to do to him, never even close. He adored Toby and claimed to hold love for her. She might as well reach into his chest and pull his heart out to take with her when she left, it would leave him in just as much pain.

"I'm so sorry," she whispered through her sobs into his chest, feeling so sick with herself that she could just retch.

Jareth's lips gently brushed over her head as his arms continued to hold her. His voice was very shaky when he answered her like he was having difficulty with his own emotions. "You owe me no apologies, Sarah. You have done nothing wrong."

'If he only knew,' Sarah thought bitterly to herself as more tears ran down her cheeks.


	18. Chapter 18

Beta is The Art of Suicide

X

After Jareth's talk with her, she hadn't been hungry enough to even try to eat any supper and was thankful when Jareth didn't seem to have an appetite either. Instead of taking her to the dining room, he had taken her back up the stairs and into the nursery.

To be honest, at that moment, feeling as slimy as she did for her plans to whisk Toby away from him, she would have rather taken on a banquet of food than spend time alone with Jareth and his blooded son.

Tallia was in there too though, coaxing Toby to try and eat some mashed up paste that was off white in color. She wasn't having the greatest of luck as Toby twisted this way and that, getting the paste all over the both of them. She stopped what she was doing and bowed her head submissively as Jareth and Sarah both entered the room, keeping her gaze to the floor. Jareth released Sarah's hand and moved over to her and the babe.

It only broke Sarah a little more to see Toby smile and happily start squirming in his seat upon the approach of his father. He reached out with his little hands and squealed "da-da!" over and over again as Jareth scooped him up and gave him a playful toss in the air before catching him with ease. Nonetheless, Sarah's heart had leaped into her throat at the sight of Toby being tossed like that. At least it hadn't been very high.

Toby twisted around in Jareth's arms and spotted Sarah, instantly smiling and abandoning his attention on Jareth to reach out to her. "Sa-Sa hold!"

Sarah offered up a weak smile for Toby's sake, stepping forward to take him but Jareth held out a hand to stop her. "Hold on, Sarah, stay your ground."

She frowned at that, confused as to why she couldn't approach.

Jareth shifted Toby around to face her in his hands and knelt on the floor, placing Toby on his feet on the play carpet. "I want you to see something," he told her, his face glowing with pride. Sarah wasn't entirely sure what was going on, but she followed Jareth's lead out of instinct and knelt as well.

Jareth held onto Toby's hands as the babe gathered his balance, standing on his own two legs. Very slowly Jareth let go of his hands, allowing him to stand alone.

Sarah barely allowed herself to think about what was about to happen or what it was exactly that Jareth was showing her, even though a part of her was sure she knew. She wouldn't let herself believe it till she saw it happen. She reached out her hands in front of her, beckoning for Toby to come to her that way since she couldn't find her voice enough to call for him.

Toby grinned at her, moving just the very slightest bit before bringing first one foot forward, then the other. She could barely believe what she was seeing as a grin split across her face from ear to ear. Toby was walking! He was walking all on his own!

He came towards her, no hesitation or fear whatsoever on his face but only happiness and pride in himself and adoring love as he kept his focus on Sarah.

It was a perfectly shining moment… till Jareth spoke.

"That's it, precious babe, go to your mother," he coaxed.

The smile left Sarah's face faster than it could have if he had slapped her and she stood up, Toby all but forgotten in that second. Her sudden movement caused Toby to overbalance and then overcorrect himself as he made to face plant it, falling onto the floor hard and immediately screaming his head off from the surprise and pain. Jareth rose from his spot faster than if someone had lit his tail on fire and quickly picked up his son, casting a disapproving eye at Sarah as he rocked him in comfort. "There there son, you are alright."

He glanced back at Sarah once more but she was hardly paying attention. She was too shaken by what had just happened, by what Jareth had just said.

"That was wonderful of you, Sarah," he growled out, holding Toby in his arms protectively. "Next time why not just push him." Even Tallia looked shocked as she looked over Toby from the corner of her eye to make sure he was alright.

Jareth glanced back at Tallia like he had forgotten that she was even in the room and her eyes immediately snapped back to the ground. "Leave us."

Tallia didn't even hesitate as she got up and moved past them both and out the door, shutting it behind her.

Sarah glared right back at him. "You don't get to blame me; you were the one that… you said… why did you say that? I'm not his mother. I am his sister!"

Jareth shook his head in disgust, plopping down on the cushion that Tallia had been sitting on and taking a spoonful of the white-ish paste, attempting to get Toby to eat more of it himself. "Don't start that, Sarah. You know bloody well that you are not his sister. You were little more than his babysitter. You share no blood with this child whatsoever."

"You're right, so that right there shows that I am not his mother and I don't like you referring to me as such."

"You were never his 'chosen' sister Sarah, you were just there. You are his chosen mother. If you don't want to be his mother because of your personal feelings toward me then I would simply like to point out that the one you hurt the most by doing so is the one who did nothing whatsoever to deserve it." He got Toby to eat more of his food.

Sarah continued to just stand there, sulking about it all as she watched him continue to feed Toby. "In that case, what he needs is his mother," she grumbled under her breath, only to tense when Jareth went deathly still where he sat.

He kept his voice low and steady, for Toby's sake, but it only made what he said that much more threatening. "I will strongly request that you never speak of such a thing to me again. If you do I will silence you without hesitation. Am I understood?"

He looked up and his eyes bore into hers, leaving no room for doubt in her mind. She wasn't going to say she was sorry though, she was too mad at him yet for even pretending that much. Instead, she decided it would be best to just keep her mouth shut this time. She turned away from Jareth and Toby, ready to just go to bed. After all, she would be meeting with the worm again the night after tomorrow. He would then tell her how to escape from Jareth.

She glanced back over her shoulder and could see Jareth had gone back to feeding Toby, all annoyance and anger gone from his face as he continued to feed his son, who was taking to the mesh a lot better now that his father was feeding him. Sarah felt pangs of guilt nibbling at her spine for having caused Toby to fall while he had been walking, and then for not rushing to him like Jareth had but instead shying away from him just because of what Jareth had said.

She hated this, feeling like her head was constantly spinning and her world turning upside down on her. She hated Jareth but loved how he cared for Toby. She loved Toby, but he was actually the reason she was even here. Karen was making her escape possible, but she had been the one to cause this whole mess in the first place… well Jareth too, but it was her fault that Sarah and her father had been involved in it. Just like when she had run away in the Underground, she had run to anyone caring enough to help her and didn't think about what it could cost them for their kindness. Here people had lost their properties, in the Aboveground she and her father had lost each other. She wanted to go home, but now she wasn't as sure about taking Toby there with her. He shouldn't have been taken away from his mother, but he shouldn't have been taken away from his father either.

She felt so confused. And only felt more confused as she watched Jareth attentively and patiently feed the tike, using the soft spoon to scoop up some of the paste from his lip and back into his mouth.

"There we are," Jareth spoke softly to him, "Doesn't that just taste wonderful."

Sarah held back the smile pushing at her lips at Toby's grin. "What is that stuff anyway?"

"Rice cereal ground up and mixed with wolf's milk. Highly nutritious and easy on baby stomachs," Jareth explained to her, never shifting his gaze from Toby.

"Wolf's milk?! You can't feed that to a baby!" she hissed, debating on taking the stuff away from Toby ASAP.

Jareth frowned at her but didn't pause in his actions of feeding the child more. "It's common practice among the fae to give offspring servings of wolf's milk. It will help make them stronger and more cunning. The nurses did the same for me when I was but a babe."

 _Yeah and look how that turned out_.

"Drinking milk from a wolf will not make anyone automatically stronger or smarter when they are older. I drank milk from cows regularly and I am no slower or fatter for it!" she reasoned.

Jareth rolled his eyes at that and turned his attention away from her and back to his son in his arms, shifting him around so as to burp him, and throwing a towel over his shoulder to avoid spit-up. "It's just one of our ways Sarah."

As if that explained everything.

"Besides it will do no more or less for him than cow's milk would so there is no reason for you to make a fuss." Toby burped and Jareth brought him back down into his lap, using the towel that had been over his shoulder to dab at the little line of spit running down his chin. "Wasn't that an absolutely delicious meal?" Jareth smiled at Toby as the babe simply stared back at him. "I'll just bet that you even liked the milk," he grinned, indirectly jabbing at Sarah playfully.

She didn't think it was funny.

She tried not to look like she was pouting- even though she really was- by picking out a stuffed doll made to look like a little princess from Toby's play chest and playing with the finely threaded blue eyes the little blonde doll possessed. Jareth bounced and spoke with Toby for a couple more minutes and she felt trapped in her spot as he did so.

For some reason, she never felt right about getting too close to either Toby or Jareth when they were together. It felt like she was invading a personal moment or something between them. She couldn't go over to them and she had a feeling that Jareth wouldn't want her to leave just yet. She felt like Tallia must whenever Jareth was interacting with Toby, like an outsider in this family moment. It was like going to a family reunion when it was someone else's family.

She looked up and caught Jareth looking at her out of the corner of his eyes again, he had been staring at her again. When she looked up rather than looking away he had turned his head fully towards her, his mismatched eyes intense. "Are you tired?"

She hadn't really been expecting that question, but yeah, she was. The day had been long and thanks to that psychotic demon female with a peter pan like penchant to stay young. It had been horrible. "Yeah, I am."

Jareth nodded his head and stood up from the cushion on the floor, carrying Toby over to the crib he placed a kiss on his forehead and gently settled him down in it. Sarah forced herself to move over to the crib and placed the little princess inside with Toby, who immediately grabbed onto the leg of it and hugged it to him as he turned over on his side. He wouldn't be making a fuss tonight surprisingly. He usually did cry his head off when anyone tried to put him down to sleep. "Good night, Toby," she whispered gently.

Jareth rolled his eyes at her insistence of the name but said nothing. She had heard him say it by mistake a few times too so it wasn't like he could really talk.

She turned and made to leave the room, only to stop in her tracks as her blood ran cold and her bones became stiff. Her breath left her in a gasp as a very familiar song drifted along softly behind her.

" _There's such a sad glow, deep in your eyes._

 _A kind of pale jewel, open and closed within your eyes._

 _I'll place the sky within your eyes."_

Sarah turned around to see Jareth wasn't even paying attention to her but was hunched over the crib, his elbows planted on the side bar as he sang.

"W-what are you doing?" Sarah demanded, the song itself kicking her heart rate up as she recalled the only other time she had heard it.

Jareth turned to her and immediately hushed her. "Shhh, I am trying to get him to sleep."

She remembered what Rally had told her then, about singing and how it was considered a great act of love among the fae.

" _There's such a fooled heart, beating so fast._

 _In search of new dreams, a love that will last._

 _I'll place the moon within your heart."_

He had sung those words to her once. She remembered the ballroom in vivid detail as he sang. He had been watching her, drawing her deeper into the crowd as he played a game of hide and seek, not allowing himself to be found till she had made it to the very center of the labyrinth of people.

" _As the pain sweeps through, makes no sense to you._

 _Every thrill is gone, wasn't too much fun at all._

 _But I'll be there for you as the world falls down._

 _Falling, falling, falling in love."_

Had he sung to her as a gesture of his feelings towards her? As he was now with Toby he had sung to her in much the same sweet and gentle doting voice.

Sarah suddenly felt short of breath and her chest was starting to constrict on her. She needed to leave the room. Jareth could be upset with her for it if he chose, but she wasn't staying in here. She turned on her heel and hurried out of the nursery before Jareth could go on. She headed toward the door to her own room quickly, only to have to stop when she found it locked. She didn't have the means to open any locked doors around here without Jareth's help, and she didn't want to go into the master bedroom.

She pressed her back against the door and tried to catch her breath and try to calm herself down a little, resigned to the fact that she would have to wait in the hall. she glanced at the painting of the mirror and took a double take. She had thought for a second… like something had passed by it. She had seen the movement of a shadow, she had thought. Not a shadow though, it had been much too light for that. Like a shadow of a shadow of something moving on the other side. She stopped and looked up at the grand painting.

It was at least nine foot in height and possibly five or six foot wide. The framing was simple for the type of stuff Jareth kept around, just smooth wood painted black. Then the picture itself was painted in soft tones to look as though it reflected the hallway itself, cloudy around the edges, and minus her. She had thought she had seen through…

"What are you doing?"

She jumped at the accusing tone Jareth had addressed her with. She hadn't noticed him come out of the nursery. Jareth was watching her with a serious and almost accusing gaze.

"Wha- I- nothing. I was just looking at it is all." she stammered, caught off guard both by the question and the way he had asked it. Was he mad about her leaving? Well, he could get over it. She had had to leave. She couldn't stand to be in the same room as him while he had sung that.

Jareth said nothing, simply stared at her with those intense eyes of his. Sarah didn't feel up to a staring contest though and turned instead to her door, twisting the handle only to find it was still locked against her. She turned back to Jareth to ask him to unlock it since she couldn't but he cut her to the chase.

"I don't wish for you to spend the night in your bed. You will share mine instead tonight."

She frowned at that. "I'm still on my period. We had a deal."

Jareth stepped closer to her and she backed up, her back hitting the wall. She leaned against it as Jareth placed his hand next to her head and leaned in close. His lips were close enough to her that she could feel his warm breath ghost over her cheeks. "And I never said I intended to break our deal. But I want you to be with me tonight. Today has been long for us both, and I would like to both hold you and be held. I am allowed that."

Sarah didn't fight him as he pressed his lips against hers. She couldn't help but want to be held too, even by Jareth. She hadn't had the easiest day or anything and she felt low. She moved her lips against him in response and a low sound almost like a cross between a sigh and a moan poured forward from the back of his throat as he leaned against her.

His weight was a familiar and warm presence against hers and whether she liked it or not her body instantly recognized him and formed against him. The knowledge that he wouldn't be forcing her into sex tonight took away the usual tension that she would normally have felt and allowed her to relax just a little. Just enough to allow herself to kiss him back and close her eyes and forget everything about both herself and him for a couple minutes.

She wasn't sure why it surprised her that he was as good as he was at kissing, but it did, and he was. There was no great heat or veracity to his movements like there normally was when he was heading toward sex, but just light brushes and strokes of his lips and tongue that bordered on feeling sweet and gentle. His arms held her just as gently, pulling her along and keeping her against him so that he could lead her out of the hall and back into the master bedroom.


	19. Chapter 19

_Beta is the marvelous The Art of Suicide. Seriously, she is a peach!_

 _X_

It was early morning already. Time to get up.

Jareth didn't want to open his eyes.

He didn't want to get up. Or move. Or do anything. He didn't open his eyes because he didn't need to in order to feel everything around him. The air was crisp on his face, which was turned toward the glass doors. The covers over him were warm though, and soft. Sarah was with him too. He could feel her against him, a soft but solid weight against him. She was tucked into the crook of his right arm, her head and arm resting on his chest. One of her legs was thrown carelessly over his waist. Her breathing was deep and steady, he could feel it moving in and out of her.

What he wanted to do was stay exactly how he was right now in this moment for as long as he could possibly hold onto it, and then for a while more.

Last night, when he had been singing to his son Sarah had left the room. He had been hurt on some level by her refusal to even be in the room as he had sung that song. _That_ song in particular. He had finished with Toby and then gone to find Sarah, only to find her out in the hall snooping about the painting of the mirror. He had been gone from his castle all day, then had come back to find his medic playing story-time with Sarah. As if he hadn't already been exhausted. Although he was used to the busy and demanding duties of running a kingdom… visiting his parents was always a different matter. Even if it was pleasant enough it still drained him to have to put up with both of them alone. Usually, Mavid was there to help distract some of the fold, but he had left Mavid here to make sure that Sarah would be okay with Rally. For the most part, she had been. From what Mavid had told him she had behaved herself much better than he would have ever expected her to do… better than he himself would have probably done. She had held to her end of the bargain -in spite of her eventual loss of temper.

He had been feeling a little at wit's end himself last night. After Toby had taken his first steps his mother had taken his son to "show off how adorable he is" while he had been instructed to go see his father who was waiting for him in his study. Erib had been there too and all either of them had to say to Jareth (more than once or twice) was that his deadline for making Sarah presentable was merely a couple days away. Then his father had railed him once more about taking Sarah as his wife for about a full three minutes before Jareth had stormed out.

She had behaved well enough while he was gone, and Mavid assured him that she had done well enough in her lessons. And she had been good to him last night too for the most part. He had taken them into the bath and she had permitted him to have her sit in his lap in the warm water so that he could properly wash her. After they were both clean they must have sat in the tub for an additional ten minutes or so till the water cooled and he had just held her as she rested against him as if he were a chair molded just for her.

She had hardly spoken two words to him and hadn't really offered to touch him much, but had tolerated all his caresses and kisses so well that he could have almost considered them welcomed. Maybe they were only becoming familiar to her, but he wasn't one to complain about it. Quite the contrary, he had been happy enough to stay in the boundaries of his promise to her and simply brush his hands over the soft skin of her arms, cheeks, and waist before rolling over onto his back and pulling her in close for sleep. And that's how he had woken up to find them both this morning.

Why couldn't she normally be so good to him? Whenever she was sweet to him it only made him want to toss the world at her feet and tell her to take it all. Yet she insisted on being difficult and headstrong, crying and sulking and other nonsense.

Jareth let out a deep sigh and slowly allowed his eyes to flutter open. Sarah sighed against his neck and he tensed as a soft noise escaped her. She was waking up too. He kept utterly still and quiet, almost like that would convince her to simply drift back off to sleep and stay with him longer like she was now. No such luck though, as she made another sound like a moan and turned her head first away from him and then back into his neck. There was a pause and then he felt her head tilt up so that she could look at his face. After another pause, she lifted her head to peer out at the glass doors beyond the golden curtain of the canopy and let out a sigh that only brought her body closer against his. Had he not already been hard due to the nature of it being morning he would have likely reacted to the feel of her moving against him just the same.

"It's morning," she sighed out.

Jareth nodded his head in confirmation. "It is."

She groaned and buried her face against his chest, "I don't want to get up and put on another one of those stupid gowns. I certainly don't want to have any more lessons with Rally. She's as awful as the lessons themselves and just as pointless if you ask me." She lifted her head to look at him again and her eyes were practically pleading. "Jareth, about yesterday… about our deal…"

Jareth cut her off before she could start to ramble on about how none of it was her fault. "It's alright Sarah I already know how your lessons went, and how they ended. You needn't explain to me."

She was silent, just staring at him for a heartbeat. "And our deal?"

"I will send for Ishapell's pet to be sent here," he sighed.

She let out a sigh of relief that he didn't really appreciate but then she gave him a smile that he truly did. "Thank you, I know she'll be so happy."

"I suppose you want to go give her the news then, no doubt she and Clora both will be in your room any minute now."

Sarah bit the corner of her lip and Jareth couldn't help but think it a very cute gesture. "I don't know, I meant it when I said I don't want to get up. I'm still tired and the last person in the world I want to see is Rally."

Maybe that was the key to her heart -bringing around others that she would actually hate more than him so that she would be nicer to him like she was last night. Jareth suppressed his slight smile at the grim thought.

Sarah met his eyes again and he could tell instantly that she wanted to ask him either for or about something. He practically held his breath as he waited for her to. He loved it when she asked him for stuff -whatever it was. Her doing so and then him being able to give it to her made him feel like it was an acknowledgment on both their parts that she needed him if for nothing else than as a provider. With all his power and connections and wealth, he was more than capable of that and he like being able to prove that.

"What is it Sarah?" he coaxed when she said nothing.

"Could I -just this one time maybe -do you suppose I could sleep in? Just for another hour or two?" he could tell from the tone in her voice that she was already sure he would tell her no.

"Hold on one moment while I take care of something and then yes, I will allow you to sleep in this morning."

Surprise lit up her face as well as the happiness that spread to it and a grin split her from ear to ear. He could hardly keep from grinning himself like some sort of fool, but he liked seeing her smile, and he was elated to know that he had been the one to make her smile rather than cry for a change. He moved to get up and she rolled off him, only to pause when while removing her leg from over his waist she discovered the evidence of morning. He didn't answer to her about it though with any hint of explanation or shame of any sort as he moved from under the covers to retrieve his robe and went out into the hall.

Jareth had been planning to just go out to the hall to contact Mavid through his crystals but like fate had planned it out, Mavid and the wet nurse both came from around the corner of the stairs and into the hall. The wet nurse was already late for her duties to his son and Mavid had no doubt tagged along to meet up with Jareth so they could start work for the day. The binding marks on Tallia's wrists didn't go unnoticed by Jareth and he was sure that under the long white skirts she wore another pair probably adorned her ankles and she walked with a slight limp. Obviously, she had been in Mavid's bed. When she glanced up Jareth could see her lip was split and her cheeks were red with embarrassment. She nodded quickly to him before ducking past him into the nursery.

Mavid practically ambled his way up to Jareth in his relaxed state. He was dressed in a pair of tight grey leggings and a black shirt that was just mainly made up of soft leather straps that ran horizontally around his body so that gaps were left to expose his torso to plain view. The light in his blue eyes was like a siren announcing that he had gotten his fun and was in a pleasant mood for it.

Since his own wife was actively denying him use of her body Jareth couldn't help but feel a bit sour towards his friend for it. Tallia being the only female within the kingdom that Mavid had any right to order into his bed, Jareth held no surprise that he seemed to do so often enough. Whether the female enjoyed it or not was none of his concern since she had yet to ask him to stop Mavid's advances towards her, but he did have a problem with it when Mavid was causing his son's nanny to be late in her chores. He made sure to tell the male as much too.

Mavid nodded dutifully but it may as well have been a shrug. "Just a little morning fun. I'll keep better track of time in the future is all." His friend looked him up and down slowly in both curiosity and amusement. "Not your usual state of dress but I can deal with it."

Jareth rolled his eyes at the jab about still being in his house coat. "I'm letting you know that Sarah and I both will be taking the morning off."

Mavid nodded his head in understanding. "Some morning fun of your own huh?" the fae smirked.

Rather than answer him on the touchy subject, Jareth simply pressed on. "Take charge for the morning and see that my affairs are all in order for this afternoon. Let Rally know that her services will not be needed till tomorrow, I think Sarah would most enjoy a reprieve from her lessons. Look into those rumors that have been going around the goblin city about chicken poaching and take another walk through the garden if you would with some goblins to see if maybe Sarah's would be visitor can't be found out there."

Mavid nodded his head unquestioningly. "I'll do that."

"One more thing, I need you to let my cousins both know that they will have the morning off in their duties to the queen and send for Ishapell's pet to be brought here as soon as arrangements can be made."

Mavid frowned at that. "Oh?"

Jareth offered up no more than that, although for his friend he wanted to.

"With all due respect, I think that perhaps the last thing we need running around this castle is another-"

"Mavid I have given you my orders and will not change them for your personal designs. See that all I have told you gets done." He didn't say 'please' and couldn't, but it still managed to hang in the air between the two.

Mavid was silent for a moment, then begrudgingly nodded his head and turned to go about his tasks while Jareth slipped back into his room. He would make it up to Mavid later.

All thoughts of Mavid flew from Jareth's head when he turned back to his bed. His thoughts always seemed to do that whenever he saw Sarah in his bed. Currently he could see through the drawn canopy that she was laying on the side that he had abandoned on her stomach, a thin blanket clinging to her form all the tighter since she had it wrapped around her against the cold so that he could perfectly make out the dip in her back and the slight swell of her buttocks and the way her legs were spread out, one knee bent. Her hair was messed and wild around her and her head was turned away from him, her eyes closed as she tried to get back to sleep. Although he had promised her the ability to both sleep in and avoid intercourse, he still was overcome with the sudden need to touch her at the sight.

Jareth pulled back the canopy and climbed onto the bed, kneeling between her legs as he undid the clasp of his robe but kept it on against the cold. He leaned over her and rested his hands on either side of her body to hold his weight as he kissed her exposed cheek, and then the back of her shoulder. She let out a soft noise like a simple acknowledgment that he was there.

He pulled her hair to the side and dipped his head into the crook of her neck and shoulder, kissing the skin there before licking a thin line over it, and then following the same line with his teeth gently. He moved one of his hands from the bed to stroke along her side and his body came down to rest against hers. Through her state of half-sleep, she moaned softly and he only felt encouraged to go a little further as he slipped his hand under her to cup her breast as he slowly thrust himself against the indent of her ass through the thin sheet. He kept up the slow rhythm, teasing himself as he continued to suck at the back of her neck as his fingers worked her breast and she moaned softly beneath him, her butt lifting slightly higher against him as she enjoyed the feel.

As much as he would have wanted to take that as an invitation to take this all the way, he knew it wasn't. That it was simply her responding to the way he was touching her now. All the same, Jareth couldn't help but move his hips quicker as he rubbed harder against her. With her buttocks higher in the air, he could slip his hand down to the slit between her legs and his clever fingers found their way to her most sensitive areas as she continued to pulse underneath him. She had yet to open her eyes but they both knew she wasn't asleep but simply enjoying the touches he was giving her.

He moved his fingers around her clit in painfully slow circular motions, just barely brushing against it here and there but rubbing all around it to both tease and intensify her sense of touch there. She was starting to breath harder in a fast shallow pattern as she grew wetter for him. He knew how she would feel if he decided to lift the thin blankets that were the only thing separating them and plunge deep into her; hot, wet, and oh so tight. To feel her squeezing his member from deep within as he lost himself within her… and then to only have it feel ten times better when she was brought to orgasm and he could feel her tighten down and then pulse around him… truly it was as close to absolute bliss as any would come.

He almost lost himself in his thoughts and had to still his motions against her momentarily lest he lose his control. He leaned back from Sarah as he continued to work her with his fingers, her own wetness allowing them to easily and quickly slide over her. His other hand gripped her waist for both balance and support and she was openly and steadily moaning beneath him now, her hips moving against his at the same speed so that every time her hips moved back against him his thrust forward to meet her. Jareth felt a shudder just under the skin of the flesh he touched between her legs and knew that her orgasm was about to come crashing down on her even before her moans suddenly cut off and her body tensed.

He moved faster against her, his hips swinging freely as she cried out in a way he had never heard her do before and her body kicked under his. The sound she had made had almost been more beautiful than a song to his ears. He knew that she was pulsing inside even without being in her and just the thought was enough to drive him over the edge and cause him to thrust forward as his own orgasm released all over the blanket over her back.

Sarah fell back down onto the bed, or rather her hips did, and she lay there panting in the same fashion as he longed to do as he forced himself to get up and drag the thinner blanket from her, wadding it up and throwing it into the corner for now as he tried to regather himself somewhat. He climbed back onto the bed next to Sarah and reached over to the foot where the thick winter blanket that he kept had been pushed, pulling it over both Sarah and himself before shrugging off his robe and laying down next to her.

Jareth took the hand that was closest to him and turned over onto his side facing away from her, bringing her hand with him so that she was forced to move in closer against his back if she wanted to keep her arm attached to her. Eventually, with her draped over his back and her arm wrapped around his waist he could drift back off to sleep alongside her.

X

Things were… better.

Maybe.

No, they definitely were better, even if just a little.

Roger Williams hadn't been back to work since it had happened, puttering around the house mostly. He felt torn about it- like he felt about most things these days- between both missing his work and fellow coworkers at Barnes and Wiley Insurance Agency and not knowing if he could ever handle seeing their faces again and hearing their condolences for the loss of his children. At times, he longed to do stuff like go to work… as if nothing had happened. As if things were normal. As if… as if he never had a daughter or son at all.

The realization of these thoughts always met with the same conclusion; him spiraling into a shame cycle so deep that he would often just go upstairs and go back to bed and wait for the next day to come.

The police insisted that they were still looking, but it was obvious that they were barely putting forth half the effort they had before. It had been almost two weeks of failed search parties and amber alerts. The police had mentioned to him at one point that anyone lost over seventy-two hours had very slim chances of being found alive, but he just couldn't bring himself to believe that either of his children was dead.

Truthfully, he didn't feel like they were. He couldn't explain it, but he just had a feeling deep down inside of him that said that they were alive. He liked to think he knew his daughter more than anyone else and knew that if she had been stolen away by someone, she knew to try every chance she could to get away from them or to alert someone around her to her predicament no matter what she was threatened with.

The way Karen had explained it to the police… she had made it sound as if Sarah had just taken Toby and run off with him or something. Since they had no leads as to who else would take two kids and leave behind no trace of ever being there the police were making it look that way to the public too. He didn't like it.

He couldn't think of why Sarah would take Toby with her even if she did run away. It didn't make sense. She knew her responsibilities as a big sister to watch over and love Toby, but truthfully, she never seemed to like him all that much even when she wasn't being made to babysit. That was just one of many things about all this that just didn't make a whole lot of sense to him. Even the part of her running away seemed odd. She was a great one for the dramatics, and so had threatened to do so from time to time while growing up, but she wasn't one to be taken seriously about it.

He could remember a time when she was about seven years old she had been outraged with him because he had insisted on enforcing his rule of no more than four hours of TV a day and had stormed upstairs to her to pack her stuff so she could run away. She had started going through her toys and by the time she was finished she had forgotten all about running away and had just simply started playing.

She had been angry about having to watch Toby too, but despite that, he just couldn't understand her actually running away over it. And if she did why would she take her brother with her? To him, a kidnapping was the only thing that made sense, but what didn't make sense- and the cops agreed with him here- was that there were no signs of a struggle, or forced entry into the house, or the fact that Karen had been right in the kitchen and noticed nothing. It didn't add up to him. Try as hard as he could to not think about it too much. Those things just nagged at him.

He looked over at the clock above the oven as he took another drink of his coffee. Normally he liked it with sugar and cream. Since IT had happened though, he had started taking it black for no visible reason whatsoever. The clock announced to him that it was about twenty past seven. Karen was off at another meeting with Sarah's school counselor.

She was still little more than a nervous wreck a lot of the time, looking constantly anxious and lost in her own head as she went about her regular routines as if Sarah and Toby weren't missing but just rather off on a trip or something. Considering, he supposed she was doing well. Her meetings with the counselor seemed to really be helping her. He wondered if maybe he shouldn't consider arranging a meeting with the woman as well if nothing else he could thank her for what she was doing for Karen.

X

Sarah couldn't remember the last time she had felt so… optimistic.

She had gotten plenty of sleep, an orgasm, Jareth was being very nice to her, Ishapell was too since she had found out that Jareth had indeed sent for Torik, and the icing on the cake was that he had canceled her classes with Rally for the day!

She could hardly believe the good mood she found herself in as she took in the beauty of the garden around her. After she had woken up Jareth had continued to be sweet and innocently affectionate with her, even helping her dress for the day in something that she had picked out herself. She couldn't remember the last time she had been the one to decide what she would wear. She had still had to pick out a dress from her closet, but the point was that she had been allowed to pick it! So today she wore a relatively simple gown that was snowy white with a deep blue overthrow for contrast that draped over the slight bell-shaped skirting and crossed over the front of her bust before crossing again behind her neck to form a hood. For once much of her arms were bare and it felt kind of nice. Jareth had tried to talk her into wearing a pair of white elbow length gloves with it- for respectability, he had said, since it was unseemly for one of her status to be slowing so much of their arms and hands- so she had taken them but had simply tucked them into the skirting.

It was on the warmer side out today than it had been, which made Sarah wonder if maybe the Labyrinth had seasons. It would probably be pretty to see snow covering everything here.

Ishapell and Clora had come with her out into the garden, happier this time since they weren't having to walk around with her for hours. Although, if they all did take off their shoes again Sarah didn't think that Ishapell would be so quick to run and tell Jareth. This time Sarah had resigned to sitting down at the first couple benches they had happened upon and they had just sat there talking about pretty much nothing.

"So, do we ever get snow here in the Labyrinth?" she asked.

Clora shuddered. "Ick, thankfully no, it pretty much all stays in the White Kingdom on the other side of the Labyrinth's eastern mountains. Snow is the worst, all cold and slimy feeling as it melts. Then it just turns brown and slushy, ick!"

Ishapell smiled at that and turned to Sarah. "It will be growing cold enough for snow before too much longer here, but like Clora said, it will all stay on the other side of the mountains. They have snow almost always over there. There does tend to be great amounts of rain at times here in the labyrinth though."

"Oh, that's too bad, I like the snow." Sarah sighed.

Clora laughed then. "Not like it would ever reach this garden anyway."

"Why is that?"

Ishapell shot Clora a look but Clora just went on. "Well you know, the magic and all. It's not like the snow is smart enough to know the secret to getting in here."

"Wait a minute! You know the secret?!" Sarah gasped.

Clora shrugged but the smile stayed on her face. "I didn't say that. I just know that there is, in fact, a trick to it. But that's all. I think Jareth is the only one who knows, although Mavid probably does too."

Sarah was about to press, but Ishapell cut her to the chase. "She honestly doesn't know, Sarah. If she did she would tell you. She loves telling secrets after all, don't you Clora?" Ishapell's tone had turned to one of warning and her focus was solely on Clora. Obviously, Sarah was missing something between them. If she didn't know any better she would have said that in some way Ishapell had just threatened Clora with something to get her to stop talking.

Clora paused and considered her options before taking the warning for what it was and looking away from Ishapell in silent submission.

Sarah wasn't about to let something that odd rest though. "What does that mean?"

"Nothing," Clora huffed.

Ishapell turned back to Sarah. "Nothing to be concerned with."

"The hell!" Sarah snapped, not caring about her language as the two females flinched. "I am tired of secrets being kept from me! What are you two talking about? And if you don't tell me I will order you to tell me."

"Now you decide to start acting like a queen?" Clora laughed, surprising Sarah that she would say something like that to her.

"Clora," Ishapell hissed in that same warning tone. "Be silent or-"

"Or what? Or I might let slip the real reason she is going through all these etiquette lessons? Although it's not like she won't find out at the end of the week anyway," Clora grinned wickedly. "I just might, after all, things have been so boring around here it would be sure to liven the place up at least a little. I am just about bored to tears from the lack of excitement."

"Excitement?"

Ishapell was openly glaring at Clora now. Sarah couldn't remember the last time she had seen a look like that on the female's face. "She is talking about when you manage to get into trouble with the king. She finds it very amusing… like when she told him about how we had all taken our shoes off out here and you were punished for it. You found that highly amusing, didn't you Clora?" Ishapell snapped.

Sarah felt absolutely stunned by that. She looked to Clora, expecting- and on some scale hoping for- a denial of what Ishapell had just claimed. Clora hardly even seemed vexed.

"Is that true?!" Sarah demanded, or rather… she had meant to demand but her voice came out so strained it soundly hardly like little more than a question. "I thought that Ishapell told him. You did it?"

Clora seemed for once at a loss for words. Not that there was much she could have said. Her silence was as good a confession as any.

Sarah didn't want to hear any excuses, or explanations or apologies. She wasn't entirely sure she would be able to stomach them. Clora had been the first to befriend her since she had been brought to this world. She had just been laughing behind her back the whole time?! Finding Jareth's antics and punishments unto Sarah purely amusing. No wonder she had been in favor of Sarah throwing her drink at Jareth's father. Maybe Clora would have found it a laugh riot if she had been sentenced to death or imprisoned or something. She wanted to be angry or even outraged with the way the female had betrayed her trust- the worst part being that everyone had known before her about how Clora had made a fool out of her- but she felt much worse than that; she was hurt.

Sarah got up from her seat and marched quickly away in the direction of the castle. She could hear Ishapell and Clora both call after her but she yelled over her shoulder at the both of them to just leave her be. She didn't want to see either of them for the rest of the day if she could help it. Was nothing as it seemed in this place?! Where friends are enemies and enemies are friends! Maybe they were all just frenemies! Everyone just here to make her happy and to make her sad, angry and calm, grounded and insane. She was surrounded by two-faced players.

Sarah had almost made it to the door when she saw movement out of the corner of her eye and stopped, snapping her attention over to a particularly shaded area under a short canopy of blue fruit-bearing trees. She couldn't see anyone or anything, but she had a prickling sensation over her arms and neck as if someone or something was staring right back at her. The worm had mentioned something about how Mavid was a great spy and could turn into his own shadow or something. Little doubt he was keeping an eye on her now for Jareth. She was in no mood for it.

"I know you're there, Mavid!" she shouted at the darkness, "I'm not doing anything so you can just leave me alone too."

She turned on her heel and stormed back into the castle, her head aching with every step she took and her face felt hot and the corset she wore felt tighter than ever. She slammed the door to the garden behind her and without really having a plan as to what to do next she started moving in the direction of the throne room.

Whether she had hoped to find Jareth there she couldn't say. He wasn't there though, just a bunch of goblins who all looked up at her as she stomped in. They all seemed momentarily perplexed to see her at first, then as if a switch had been flipped they all went back to their normal destructive and nasty businesses, as usual, creating filth and leaving debris where ever they went. Sarah pushed through their repulsive bodies great and small and made her way over to the throne so she could sit down before she could manage to pass out. Her head was swimming from the emotions flooding her and the shallowness of her breathing from the corset. She was entirely worked up and felt like she would explode if something didn't happen soon.

She looked up at the goblins around her, all chaotic and noisy. They didn't even notice her sitting there actually. She could have just as easily been outside of the room as they hollered and screamed and threw things at each other. And Jareth dealt with them daily?! She couldn't even hear herself think with all the noise, but that was perfect because she didn't want to think right now. If she thought too hard about her situation or anything pertaining to it she just felt like she would… would…

She looked up at the sound of a chicken squawking and saw as a goblin launched himself at it, causing it to jump away from him towards Sarah, flapping its wings wildly as it screamed. Sarah let out a surprised scream herself as it came right at her and was able to bat it off course and away from her. It landed on the floor and made a run for the door. The little goat-like goblin that had tried to catch it glared up at Sarah. "Hey, you let it get away!"

Sarah felt a stinging sensation and looked down to see a fine scratch over the back of her hand that was already starting to pool with blood. _Oh well, what is one more cut_ , she thought bitterly to herself.

She stared down at her hand and the scratch, then it all blurred and she could hardly make it out. She blinked her eyes to try to focus and felt tears fall down her cheeks.

"Ah, are you okay king's wife?" the goblin asked, doubt lining his voice.

Sarah went to say "fine", but when she opened her mouth it wouldn't come out. When she tried again a sob escaped her instead and the next thing she knew she couldn't stop. It wasn't a hard crying like she had become accustomed to, but she couldn't get the steady flow of tears to stop and her hands were shaking from her stress.

"Wife's crying!" the goblin in front of her shouted. She could feel all eyes in the room on her and then before she could even blink she suddenly found herself alone in the room, all the goblins having run out as fast as they could. Now it was all very quiet and she was very alone. She hadn't wanted to be alone, which was probably why she had come to the throne room, but the noise and chaos were just a cover, weren't they? She might as well have not been in the room while it was all going on. She wasn't a part of it. Just like she wasn't a part of the fae, or a part of a family, or a part of anything really. Even Toby was a part of this world, being half fae himself.

She, however, was completely and unmistakably alone.

X

Mavid had gone straight to Jareth's study after coming back inside from the garden. He had taken a horde of goblins out into the garden with him early this morning per Jareth's request and once again found nothing of use or any tell-tale signs of who or what the queen had been out there to meet with that one night. She hadn't known he was out there watching her that night, there was no way.

Just like she shouldn't have known today that he had been out there watching her in case she said anything to Jareth's cousins. She had though, somehow, she must have known that he was there in the darkness watching her because she had seen him move when he had crouched down into the shadows, but then she wouldn't have seen anything since he knew he blended in perfectly with the darkness.

After she had shouted at him and gone inside he had left the garden through the doorway and went straight to Jareth's study, not bothering to re-embody himself since he could travel faster in this form and doing so would take a lot out of him anyway. He used one of his shadow tricks to enter the study through the cracks in and around the door, reforming on the other side. Jareth looked up from the papers he had been looking through at Mavid, not even surprised to see him entirely black still.

"Yes? Was there something you needed?"

"Your wife is no longer out in the garden."

Jareth shrugged. "So, did you find anything out?"

Mavid stepped over to the wall right next to a large wooden cabinet, leaning back against the wall and into its shadow as Jareth watched patiently. "If you hadn't just seen me come over here would you know that I am hiding in the shadow?"

Jareth looked confused but humored him anyway. "No. You blend in too well. Although you talking to me does sort of give it away."

"Did you ever tell your wife that I can hide in shadows?" Mavid asked as he stepped out from the wall. The void where he stood slowly shifted as soft hues of flesh-tones and the more vibrant colors of his clothing slowly pooled out from the darkness, like someone swimming up to break the surface of the water. The fae let out a sigh and slowly sank down into his chair opposite Jareth to regain some strength.

Jareth frowned at that. "You know that I wouldn't. There would be little point in you watching her if she knew you were."

"She knows. I don't…. know how she does, but she knew I was watching her in…. the garden just now," Mavid spoke between deep breaths. "She called out… to me by name, Jareth. Someone had to have told her."

Jareth's face was a mirror for how Mavid felt about the situation. The cousins didn't know about what he could do, and even when he was with Tallia he never showed her such a thing. There were a precious few people in the Underground who knew. Out of that, there were only two that he could think of that would actually tell Sarah about it.

"Jareth, she had no clue I was out there the first time I watched her in the garden. Sometime between then… and now she must have been made aware. Either somehow Carrie got a hold of her without us knowing or, far more likely, she received a visit from the Path Master that we… are not aware of."

Jareth closed his eyes tight against the headache that was threatening him. He would have that impertinent worm facing the business end of a fishing hook if he ever found him. And Sarah…

No matter how pleasant she was towards him, there seemed to always end up being something that would remind him that on her part it was all just an act. That she was just playing with him and waiting for the chance when his guard would be down.

She was still cocky from having beaten him at his own game when she ran the labyrinth. She failed to realize that all it had been all along was a game, that he had merely been toying with her and she had pulled out a few lucky shots. Such luck didn't occur twice though, and he wasn't playing around anymore. That was just something that she would no doubt figure out before long, and if not then he would teach her so himself.

"And you're sure that you found nothing in the garden this morning?" Jareth sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose between his fingers.

Mavid nodded his head. "Not even so much as a worm track."

Bloody hell, was there no wall he could make to keep that insufferable thing out of his garden?! Jareth stood up and went over to the window in his office, leaning out so that he could look down at the garden from his study. It took a second, but his keen eyes landed on the little crystal that was resting beside the wall of his castle, inside of which was housed his garden. Pure and powerful magic allowed him to create entirely magical spaces within the crystals he used. What could fit in his hand could also house what seemed like an endless stretch of plant-life, a small assortment of magical creatures including four full grown Pegasus ponies and anyone else who wondered in there either through the door inside the castle or through its other more complicated entrances and exits. He didn't dare move it though, doing so could cause serious harm to the inhabitants and chaos in nature.

Speaking of chaos… both Jareth and Mavid jumped as a highly unusual and insistent banging noise filled the room. Mavid jumped up from his seat and turned to the door in a low fighting stance on reflex almost faster than the eye could track, till of course he came to a stop and wobbled slightly on still uneasy legs.

There was more than just one banging on the other side of the door, that much was obvious and Jareth could hear the many different tones that told him that his goblins were on the other side of his door, pounding like the world was coming to an end. Jareth pushed past Mavid, "Sit down this instant you are still worn out!" and threw open his door, ready for whatever his subjects might have ready to throw at him- possibly even literally if today was one of their pointless and vile "holidays".

Jareth loomed in the doorway of his office, towering over his subjects since the tallest one of them was still only as high up as his shoulder. Many them only came up as high as his thigh and some were quite shorter than that even. Jareth put on his most terrifying scowl- which he had found early on just worked best for dealing with his subjects since the meaner you were to them, the better they would listen to and even in their own way come to love you- and rested his hands on his hips in a domineering fashion. It was never any good acting any other way around them. If Jareth was ever lenient or nice to them they seemed to take it as a sign of weakness or something and start being nasty to him.

"If none of you can give me even a halfway decent excuse as to why I shouldn't throw you all into the bog of eternal stench straight away for disturbing me like this… oh sod it, I'll just do it anyway." Jareth shrugged, raising his arms to carry out his threat as the goblins all gasped and backed away.

"No Kingy no!"

"Not the bog!"

"Bec doesn't want to get all cleaned up and pretty smelling in the bog again!"

"You promised King!"

"You said we would have to bathe in there only once a year!"

"You know we don't like smelling that good!"

One of the goblins was pushed forward out of the group in front of Jareth, a nasty little skeletal thing with patches of black spider-like hair on its head and body. "We came to tell you-"

"Tell me what? Get on with it!" Jareth snapped.

The goblin stared up at him through its coal-black eyes. "Promise you won't get mad and bog us?"

Jareth flipped his wrist and one of the goblins _poofed_ out of the group with a scream, causing all the others to jump as that one was thrown into the Bog of Eternal Stench. "For every second that goes by that I am not told what all the noise is about I will send another of you to the bog along with your friend. As a matter of fact, I believe that I took about three seconds to say that."

A bunch of goblins screamed and a few even turned and ran the other way. The nasty goblin in front of him dropped to his knees in front of him. "The queen is crying, your Majesty!" it screeched.

Jareth stopped what he was doing at that and focused his attention on the goblin. "What? What do you mean she is crying?"

"She came into the throne room and sat down in your chair. Then she just started crying! We didn't do anything to her, honest. You ordered us to leave her alone and we were… mostly."

Jareth narrowed his gaze on the small creature. "Mostly?"

The goblin looked back at one of his mates that bore a resemblance to something that had been crossed between a goat, a child, and a wart. "Kipper threw a chicken at her!"

Kettle, or whatever his name was, looked scared enough to soil himself as Jareth's eyes bore down on him. "Never dids! Never dids, kingy-king! I's trying to catch it and chick-chick flew at her and scares her is all! Would never harm queeny-queen!"

"Where is she now?" Jareth demanded of the goblins in front of him.

"We left her in the throne room so we wouldn't get blamed!" one of the goblins in the crowd answered.

Jareth let out a sigh and turned back into his office to speak to Mavid. "You'll be alright while I go see to her then?"

Mavid nodded his head affirmatively from where he was slumped back in his chair.

Jareth brought a crystal forward in his hand and allowed it to roll off the tips of his fingers to drop onto the ground right in front of the group of goblins and with a _POP_ they all vanished from the hall to the Bog of Eternal Stench. They did tend to smell slightly better after swimming around in the bog for a few minutes, and Gods knew that he would never get any of them within a stone's throw of clean water.

Jareth made his way to his throne room.

Just like the little spits had said, Sarah was curled up into herself on his throne, no longer crying but her eyes were red and puffy and some of her eye-paints had run to stain the tops of her cheeks. She didn't move at all as he entered the room, just continued to sit there and stare at the wall as if it were the most interesting thing in the whole of the Underground. Despite having slept in this morning she looked very tired indeed.

Jareth went to her, sitting/leaning on the armrest beside her as he waited for her to give him some form of recognition that he was just mere inches from here rather than still all the way across the castle from her. When she didn't so much as blink he let out a sigh and ran his fingers through her hair in comfort. He felt her lean her head against his hand just slightly.

"Why were you crying?" he asked slowly.

There was a long pause before she finally licked her lips and replied to him. "I have a lot of reasons to cry."

Jareth shrugged. "Alright, but why were you crying this time?" He didn't want her yelling at him again after they had spent such a good morning together so he was trying to be patient with her.

Again, there was a long pause. "It doesn't really matter I guess," Sarah answered tonelessly like she was clean out of emotion for the day. It was odd to see coming from her. "Just learned once again that nothing is as it seems in this place… or anyone."

Jareth couldn't help but think again about how she was just playing with him, being sweet so that she could sneak around him. He fought to keep the anger from his face and voice, but traces still managed to leak through. "Indeed, I must say that you are correct in that."

Jareth reached into his jacket and pulled out a white laced handkerchief and gently gripped Sarah's chin in one hand so that she was forced to look at him so that he could dab away the ruined eye paint. Instead of looking down or away like she normally did her striking green eyes locked onto his and stared at him like she could see his very thoughts. It was slightly unnerving and this time it was Jareth who wouldn't meet her eyes, focusing instead on the make-up and then releasing her once he was done.

"Thank you," she said in the same toneless voice. She looked up at him then and asked him a question so surprising that he wasn't so much shocked speechless as he was rocked to the base of his core.

"What exactly happens at the end of the week?"

X

He was startled, that much was obvious.

She had thought back on what had happened between her and his cousins, playing it repeatedly in her head like all girls tend to do. Something that Clora had said kept sticking out at her, " _I might let slip the real reason she is going through all these etiquette lessons. Although it's not like she won't find out at the end of the week anyway."_

She looked up and met Jareth's gaze head on, and although she wasn't sure just what was going to happen, it was clear from his reaction that something was indeed going to happen. Something else that he was keeping from her. She was sick and tired of secrets. She was going to find out what was going on…

Even if she had to force it out of him.


	20. Chapter 20

_Beta for this chapter is The Art of Suicide_

X

Jareth kept his gaze on his wife unwavering, locked on hers so she wouldn't be able to gauge the effect her words had had on him. On the outside, he knew his face was one of careful and calculated neutrality that had been honed over the many centuries. He had slapped it over his surprise at the question she had asked him almost as soon as the surprise had hit him.

" _What exactly happens at the end of the week?"_

She had asked that without hesitation or any show that she would be easily derailed from being answered directly. _How could she have known though?! How could she have had any inkling that anything would even happen at the end of this week?_ Jareth's brain kicked into overdrive as he tried to quickly piece it together. She seemed to know a little too much these days.

He had supposed that the worm had told her of Mavid, but could he have also told her about the council? There was no way that the worm could have known that. Only a precious few knew that. Not even his own goblins had any idea about it. The only ones that knew besides himself and his parents were Mavid, Erib, and those helping to get her ready specifically for that meeting like Rally and his cousins. Who the hell would have told her anything when they were under direct orders not to?

Jareth stood up from the armrest of his throne, stepping away from Sarah as he tried to decide quickly what would be the best course to take with her. The truth? Half-truths? Blatant lies?

The way her entire attention was locked on him now made it obvious that he would have a hard time convincing her of anything he told her whether or not it was the truth. She was obviously just waiting for lies to fly from his mouth. She could be so cruel.

He had not originally wanted her to find out about the meeting because he didn't want her to feel any pressure in her lessons. He had in a way been hoping that she would just gradually step into her role as queen and he could smooth over any remaining edges before presenting her. Wishful dreaming maybe.

He also hadn't wanted her to find out because of the possible other outcome. He didn't want her to know that her future as queen rode on this one meeting that was now mere days away. After all, if she failed to meet the council's requirements then her titles would be stripped away and she would become simply one more of his many subjects. How could he let her worry about something like that?

He had hoped to spare her from such worries, but now, looking down at the disheveled and hapless girl curled up on the throne next to him… maybe the truth would be just what she needed to make her realize her situation and give her a firm shove in the right direction. As much as she disliked him, even **she** would have to admit that her position as queen was far more desirable than a position as his beddable slave.

Jareth made his decision. He would tell her everything.

Sarah flinched slightly when Jareth reached out to her, at which his brows drew slightly in annoyance, but she finally reached out and took his hand because she thought he would be angry if she didn't. He pulled her off the throne onto her feet, turning them both so that he could take his seat where she had just occupied, pulling her down to hold her in his lap much like he had the previous night in the tub. She didn't fidget or shift about from nerves like she usually tended to but sat still and determined upon the tops of his thighs. The sheer strength in her stance and in her eyes was highly alluring and he wanted badly to just forget the whole thing and take her right here on the throne. The time had come that he agreed that she needed in on all this need-to-know-basis stuff.

All the same, that didn't stop him from leaning forward and placing a light kiss on her lips before leaning back against the armrest. "At the end of the week, there is to be a… sort of meeting I guess… between us and the council… and my parents," he tacked on as an afterthought. "Roughly four days from now."

Sarah frowned at that. "Meeting? Council?" clearly in utter confusion.

Jareth nodded his head. "The council is made up of three fae who uphold our laws and traditions to the fullest. Basically, they serve as the name suggests to counsel the fae in various decisions and times of inquiry by acting as an impartial but omnipotent third party. Much like your world's judges and juries would. At the end of the week, they will be having dinner with us all to observe you and pass judgment on whether you are fit to make an acceptable wife to me, mother to my children, and queen to my lands."

Sarah's eyes grew comically wide. "Dinner?! I still remember the last dinner I had to go through with your father! And how are they supposed to decide something like that from a single dinner where I will have to be more worried about which fork I'm eating with rather than if I'm a fit queen or whatever? What if I'm not found to be fit?!"

X

She stopped dead at that as a thought sped through her head almost too quickly for her to catch. "What if I'm not found to be fit?" she repeated, and Jareth's expression tensed at the much lighter tone she used to ask that question this time. "If they don't think I'm a fit queen will they send me home?!"

Jareth's arms tensed around her instantly and she hissed in her breath as his hands clamped down on her arms to be just on this side of pain. There was a dark look that clouded his mismatched eyes that made her really wish she could back up a foot or two… or maybe put the entire castle between them just in case. "No," he snapped hatefully. "You would not be sent back to the Aboveground. You would remain here with me regardless. But if you are not found fit to be queen then your titles will be stripped and you will become nothing but another one of my hundreds of subjects. They can remove you from being my wife, but they cannot legally remove you from my possession."

She wanted to scream at him, to spit in his face and laugh at him for calling her his "possession", but she was neither stupid or audacious enough to have that kind of gall. Especially not with the way he was looking at her right now like he was considering chaining her down to the floor or something to prove that she would never escape him. She felt her heart sink a little at his words. Was there no form of justice down here that would be on her side? If what he said was true than not even the form of law-enforcement they seemed to keep here could help release her from Jareth's unyielding hold. That left the Path Master and the Underground Women as her only hope.

Jareth reached out and gripped her jaw between his thumb and forefinger, holding her head in place as he pulled her up closer against him. "This is your home now, Sarah," he stated firmly. "Even if you were no longer to be my wife, your place will still forever be with me. I love you too much to have it any other way."

Sarah bit back on the scream of outrage and contempt that flowed through her as he leaned in and she was forced to allow him to kiss her deeply. He didn't just kiss her though, but rather staked a claim on her with his mouth, using his tongue and lips to touch every part of her own and leave his unmistakable and heady taste inside her till no matter how much she swallowed she could still taste him on her tongue. She hated when he was like this; sexist, supreme, and completely uncaring of what her feelings on the matter were. If, for argument's sake, he was in love with her- which she doubted still- than he was the most selfish lover in the history of the universe and all the others surrounding it. If he got his way on all things then everything was fine. Sure, he would do stuff for her and be nice to her, but she wasn't fooled. All the stuff he did for her sake was really in the end just for his own.

So that was it then. She would either act the way Jareth wanted her to act for a bunch of fae jerks she had never met before just so that she could continue to be his wife- something she had never even wanted- or she would be forced to step down from being queen. Sarah couldn't help but frown deeper. What would be so bad about that?!

Truthfully, she wasn't worried about it in any case. She would be gone before this while council business ever happened. The only reason she was even putting up with these silly "lessons" at all was because if she didn't he wouldn't let her go out into the garden anymore, and that was her only means of escape. She needed the Path Master to teach her the secret to getting out from there. Tomorrow night she would meet with him in the garden and those dreams would be made a reality.

If it weren't for that she would have told Jareth to go to hell and to take his minions and that devil woman Rally there with him when he left about five minutes ago when he called her his possession. She wasn't.

She wasn't!

X

It was the middle of the day, normally it would be sunny out at this time. Although it didn't rain, clouds still managed to hang heavy in the sky and block out that light. The kitchen was even darker since the light hadn't been bothered to be turned on and the only source of light was what seeped in through the meager window over the sink. It was quiet in the little room too, all was silent and still save for the faint sound of someone saying "Hello?" in a very confused tone.

Roger sat at the kitchen table, by himself, staring down at the phone like he had forgotten what the thing's very function was as it rested in his hand on the table in front of him.

The woman on the other end asked "hello" again but received no reply.

It was strange, like watching a movie or something, as his thumb moved from the side of the phone to push the little button with a red dot on it to end the call, cutting off the voice at "hell-" ... and wasn't that fitting?

He set the phone down on the table surface for a minute, then picked it up again. Almost as if to check and make sure that that call had just actually happened and wasn't a product of an over-distraught mind he looked at the call index, making sure that he had in fact just been talking to the right woman.

He had been on the phone all right, and the number was the correct one.

He set the phone down again slowly… and immediately picked it up and checked one last time.

Mrs. Bentley, the counselor at Sarah's high school. The only counselor at the high school. The same counselor that Karen had been meeting with to help her get through this difficult time for them both.

That very counselor had just informed him that Karen hadn't contacted her once since the sudden and shocking disappearance of Sarah and Toby.

She had gone on talking, saying something about how sorry she was about everything and if they wanted to talk at all blah blah blah…

Roger continued to stare at the phone.

He didn't move for what felt like hours but was probably just minutes. He didn't move when he heard a car pulling into the driveway, or when he heard a car door closing. He didn't even move when he heard Karen's keys in the lock of the front door.


	21. Chapter 21

_Beta for this chapter is The Art of Suicide_

 _X_

Sarah wandered down the hall aimlessly. After Jareth had found her crying in the throne room and the little conversation they had had her head just felt like it was processing every thought she had too slowly and too quickly all at once, if that was even possible. It was more imperative than ever that she escape this world soon.

At this upcoming dinner with the council it would be decided once and for all if she would be queen or slave- at least, that's the synopsis she had gathered from what Jareth had told her- and no doubt she would be put through unrelenting hell in her lessons from here on out since Jareth wholeheartedly expected her to impress them with her lack of will and personality to seem like a proper lady of the fae. Regardless as to what their decision though it wouldn't separate her from Jareth in the slightest, something he had also made plain to her during their little chat.

It was obvious that for whatever reason he greatly preferred the option of her being his queen rather than his servant and she was sure if she had to stick around long enough for this dinner and didn't make the cut that he would be very angry with her. He was going to a lot of trouble to make sure she did remain his wife so she was sure it wouldn't be good for her to end up different.

Tomorrow she would be continuing her training lessons with Rally and they would be worse than before. She just hoped that she would be able to sneak away into the gardens tomorrow night. She just had to. Staying here wasn't an option and staying here for much longer was a bad idea.

She could only hope and pray that she would be able to get out to the garden, and that the worm would be there, and that Mavid wouldn't follow her.

The odds were looking against her.

After their little talk, Jareth had mentioned that he still had work to see to, then told her to find something to do till super rather than sit in the throne room moping. Then he had made her kiss him again. As soon as he had left the room though she had spit on the floor next to the throne. And why not, the floor of that room was already stained up with spit and other filth from the goblins that liked to gather there.

On top of all that she still also couldn't push from her mind the gross violation of trust and friendship that had been made against her by Clora, who obviously regretted nothing. Clora had pretended to be her friend for no other sake than her own amusement and when she had wanted entertainment she had taken pleasure in getting Sarah in trouble, and not to mention just about cost her garden privileges. The painful part was that Sarah had never suspected… had believed entirely that Clora was her friend and that she could trust her. She would have defended Clora on anything because she thought they were friends. In retrospect, it seemed now like Ishapell had been more of a friend to her all along despite their dislike for one another. When Clora would encourage Sarah to do things that would get her in trouble it was Jareth's other cousin that would tell her not to. And she had always been kind of correcting Sarah's grammar and manners, which had helped her to seem like a little less of a fool by the time Rally had shown up. And no matter what else, it hadn't been Ishapell that had ever told on her for anything. Even though they didn't like each other, Ishapell had still done her job without open complaint to help Sarah with anything she needed. Sarah only felt more mystified by this remembrance.

She had thought to seek out Toby and spend some time with him but then decided that it wouldn't be fair to him to go see him in the mood she was in now. He would no doubt have been all smiles, wanting to play with her. Right now, she just wanted to be left alone. She had then decided to take a walk, which had turned into just wandering around, alone with her many thoughts.

Sarah felt practically suffocated by these thoughts. She almost didn't notice when she came upon Mavid walking through the hall. He was coming the opposite way from her, about to pass right by her. He barely glanced at her as he did so, merely bowing his head to her dutifully. She paused at this though, and when she did he stopped too and looked fully at her, as if waiting for a command or something, his face giving away no expression whatsoever. It was hard for her not to glare at him since she knew he was spying on her for Jareth and since he seemed to be Jareth's fist. If someone got on Jareth's bad side he would be the one to let them know, nothing personal- just business. This made Sarah tend to think of him as just Jareth's goon and she really disliked him for that. After all, they say the only one worse than the fool is his followers.

After a couple more seconds of uncomfortable silence, it was Mavid that broke it. "Did you need something from me, your highness?" His voice gave away no emotion or thought.

 _For you to leave me the hell alone when I go outside_ , Sarah thought scornfully. Her features weren't nearly as schooled as Mavid's and she didn't doubt that some of her feelings and thoughts towards him were reflecting on her face.

"If you're worried about the elf, don't be. I didn't do any lasting damage to him. On the contrary, I simply had a few words with him."

To her shame, she had about forgotten about her worry for the healer that had told her some of Jareth's past. Now that she was reminded though she wanted to go check on him. "Which way to the medical ward?" she demanded.

Mavid's lips turned up in amusement at this and he pointed down the hall in the direction she had been going. "You don't trust that I speak the truth to you?" he guessed.

Sarah fought to not openly glare at him as she ignored him and made her way down the hall towards the medical ward. She could hear Mavid chuckling behind her as she left him.

It was mere minutes before Sarah reached the door to the medical ward, this time it was closed and she couldn't help it as her mind flashed at her a mental picture of Aboris lying dead in a beaten and bloody heap amongst his equipment.

She shoved the door open hard in response to the surge of fear it retched out of her, surprising and scaring both her and the three occupants of the room when the door banged into a stand set up behind it.

To her relief, she saw that Aboris was indeed fine and looking completely unharmed- although startled out of his mind. Tallia was there too, and although she looked startled, she didn't look as fine. Her cornhusk blonde hair looked darker against her paled out shin and there were bruises standing out in stark contrast to her left eye and around her neck in a way that reminded Sarah of looking at an antique photo- all blacks and whites. She looked utterly strung out and tired to the point of exhaustion.

There was a goblin there too, stringy and small-sized with a beak like a nose and long white hair surrounding the bald peak of his little head. He looked rather like a mutated rat really. She couldn't see what was wrong with the goblin, other than that he was sitting on a medical cot with his arms crossed looking pissed off.

Aboris and Tallia both made the effort to bow to her despite their surprise.

"Your majesty, it's a surprise to see you here," Aboris gasped before straightening from his bow. He looked behind her at the door like he expected either Jareth or Mavid to rush in behind her and Sarah couldn't really blame him. Even once he saw that she was apparently alone he never did fully regain his nerves. Clearly, he felt uncomfortable having her in here so soon after what had happened last time.

Sarah held her hands up in front of her in a sort of gesture of peace. "You don't have to worry, I didn't come back here to press you for more information or anything like that, and both Jareth and Mavid are busy elsewhere. I just came here to see that you were alright."

"Him!?" the goblin on the cot in the corner screeched, "Whats about me? I'm the one who got bit by a spüe!"

The elf glared over at the little goblin. "You say that but I can't find any bite marks or anything on you and you're not showing any signs of a rash or anything else to indicate any such thing. I told you three hours ago to leave!"

"Gives me some itch weed and I will!" the goblin countered.

"You don't want it for any reason other than mischief. This room is for the sick and injured now please leave. I won't ask again."

At that, the little rat-goblin grabbed his own wrist and started writhing and moaning as if in extreme pain. "Oh, it hurts! If only I had some itch weed to cure it with!"

Aboris took one menacing step towards the little goblin, who yelped in fright and jumped down from the cot at once, barely allowing Sarah time to step out of the way as he ran out the door. Sarah tried to hide the smile that was threatening to break through at the antics between the doctor and the goblin.

Aboris gave her an apologetic glance. "He'll be back tomorrow with some new illness or wound that will require itch weed for no apparent reason."

Sarah couldn't hold back a small laugh at that. "I'm sure that that gets pretty tiresome."

"Thankfully they take most of their problems to their king rather than to me. I wouldn't have the patience for them."

Sarah had a hard time believing that Jareth was all that patient. He certainly wasn't anywhere close to patient when it came to her. It hardly took anything at all to send him over the edge it seemed. Since she couldn't think of a safe response to Aboris' remark, a silence hung in the air for a moment or two.

Aboris finally cleared his throat to speak. "I appreciate you coming to check on my wellbeing, your majesty. I'm alright, truly." Clearly, he felt uncomfortable with having her around, which led her to think that surely Mavid had done something to really intimidate the healer at least.

Tallia shifted uncomfortably next to him, catching Sarah's attention as she moved back to take up residence on the cot the goblin had abandoned.

With her attention shifted from him, Aboris seized his opportunity to distance himself from her. "If you'll excuse me for a moment, Tallia, I will go and fetch the gremlin powder I promised you," Aboris said before hurrying across the room and into his side office.

Even though it was obvious he was slinking away from her, it cleared her way to Tallia though so Sarah walked over to the female, who seemed to make it a point not to make eye contact with her. She couldn't help but feel like _persona non grata_ in this room. Probably justly so.

"Are you ok?" Sarah asked the wet nurse.

Tallia immediately nodded her head. "Yes, your highness."

Sarah tried not to sound pushy as she looked around her before focusing back on Tallia. "Do you always come here when you're okay?"

This time Tallia said nothing, simply continued to stare at the floor, but her tense shoulders suddenly went slack and she seemed to slouch even more like as though she was exhausted from pretending that she was fine. After a long breath, she finally spoke in a hushed tone like she didn't really want Aboris to overhear. "I'm becoming worn out I guess, between my duties to the future king and Mavid's attentions. I just need a little pick-me-up is all. You needn't worry yourself, your majesty."

Sarah frowned at the bruises that sprinkled Tallia's skin. Didn't she know that all she had to do was go to Jareth and tell him that she didn't want to be Mavid's plaything? At least, that was Sarah's understanding of it. Obviously, Tallia was rather shy and awfully meek, but she shouldn't have to go on suffering for it. Sarah hushed her own voice for the sake of the other female's privacy. "Tallia, if you want I'll speak to Jareth and see if he won't make Mavid leave you be."

It startled Sarah when Tallia's eyes shot up to meet hers finally, the light blue irises that met her looking shocked and terrified. "What?! Oh, please your majesty, don't do such a thing!" the fae woman pleaded, barely keeping her tone quiet she was so alarmed.

This had to be the most confused Sarah had felt all day… and that was saying something.

Her confusion must have shown on her face because Tallia let out another nervous sigh before explaining herself. "I'm not so worn out that such a measure is necessary I promise you."

"But he's obviously hurting you, Tallia," Sarah pointed out, gesturing toward the bruises on Tallia's neck and face.

Tallia frowned then. "Yes and no."

Apparently, she **could** feel more confused after all. "Yes and no?" Sarah repeated slowly as though the words were completely foreign to her.

The female turned slightly pink at that. "I won't say that I'm completely exultant in the same way that Mavid is when it comes to the more ferocious charms of the bedchamber, but I'm not reluctant to it either. Actually, I find I like it a little more each time I'm with Mavid."

"So… you're saying that you like it rough?"

Tallia fully blushed at that. "If you must word it so crassly, I suppose so. It's not just that part of it though. I've explained to you before about the importance of physical appearance among the fae before if you remember… when I got my scar…" she brushed one finger over the delicate scar that ran over her cheek. "I was not exaggerating in the least when I said that it would be nearly impossible for me to find a male who could accept me for that reason alone, but in my past, I was also cursed with a tragedy that left me utterly barren. I'm in no position to be picky about the attentions I should receive. One day my looks beyond my scar will start to fade and then I will have no attention paid to me whatsoever from any man. I can tell from your face that you do not understand or accept what I am saying to you, but please your majesty I ask you anyway to say nothing to the king or to his attendant."

Everything that Tallia was saying to her, being her reasons on why she would allow Mavid to keep being so brutal with her…

As much as Sarah tried to grasp the logic to them she just couldn't. It just didn't make sense to her for someone to allow another to treat them badly and use them just because they believed they could do no better. A part of her wanted to go to Jareth anyway to do what she felt would be best for the female, but the way she was staring at her, like she was desperately terrified of losing the strange relationship she and Mavid had, was what brought Sarah to begrudgingly nod her head in silent agreement that she wouldn't say anything.

She disliked Mavid even more for it though; Tallia was obviously vulnerable and thanks to the scar that he himself had given her she believed herself to be less than attractive even though she was still extremely lovely to look at. He was taking full advantage of her. Using her for his own pleasures and getting away with it. It wasn't right.

It wasn't fair.

Tallia spoke again, breaking the momentary silence between them. "You have been kind unto me your majesty, but I humbly ask you to please not intervene for my sake on this matter. Mavid is scarred too, even more-so than I am. He hides it so please don't let him know I said anything, but his back is covered with scars and he has other smaller ones about his body. I don't know the why of it, but for some reason, I feel a lot better about my own blemish when I'm anywhere near him." Her cheeks were flaming with color that Sarah wouldn't have guessed the female had in her considering her shallow paleness.

She still didn't understand the why of any of what Tallia had just said, just that the female seemed on the edge of tears at the thought of Mavid's advances being stopped. Sarah wanted to yell at the female as much as she wanted to comfort her. "Are you in love with him?" She forced herself to ask.

Tallia firmly shook her head "no" at that. "I would be the pinnacle of fools if I was. I simply value him. He does not love me and never will. If he were to love anyone it would be the king, or likely the king's cousin. I know he's at least very interested in her."

As if she had been smacked in the back of the head, Sarah felt completely blind-sided by that remark. "You don't mean Clora do you," it wasn't phrased as a question and wasn't meant to be one.

Tallia shook her head again, "No, he fancies Ishapell above all others."

Aboris walked back into the room then and Sarah and Tallia were forced to drop their discussion, even though Sarah's head was spinning and she desperately wanted to continue it.

"Here you are, Tally." Aboris was carrying in his hands a small lap table, and Tallia moved back on the cot so that he could place it with the short legs sitting on the mattress on either side of her. Sarah looked over at the table, wondering about the medicine he was giving her to perk her up. There was a very finely grounded blue powder in a little pile on the table, with a thick little square piece of blank paper like the kind business cards are printed on sitting next to it.

"Are you in need of anything else from me before supper starts your majesty?" Aboris asked her.

It was almost supper time, wasn't it? She would have to go to the dining room and face Ishapell and Clora, still feeling angry at Clora for the way she had played with her. Mavid would be there too and now she really wished that she wasn't aware that he had a hidden penchant for Ishapell. Plus, she was even more frustrated with him for his continued use and abuse of Tallia. And what if Rally was joining them?!

But the topper was Jareth.

After what had been told to her earlier in the throne room, she absolutely did not want to be around Jareth and more of his "you are my property" views of her. She might as well have been the silverware he ate with. She still needed to be able to go out to the gardens tomorrow night and for that to happen she would have to behave herself till then. With her emotions running so high like they were today who knew what could happen at a dinner like that?

"Can I have something to calm my nerves?" Sarah asked the healer since he was offering.

Aboris seemed surprised that she had asked but nodded his head dutifully before handing a small stick to Tallia and turning back to his office.

"Something strong," Sarah added quickly before he could leave them.

Aboris didn't show any surprise he might have felt this time, simply nodded his head and with an "of course, your majesty" ducked into his office once more.

As little as she cared for being called "your majesty" or "your highness" she wasn't in the mood to fight it right now, knowing that they would just start calling her such again the next time she saw either Tallia or Aboris.

Sarah looked over at Tallia and saw that she had used the card to arrange the little pile of dust into a thin and even line and that the tiny stick Aboris had handed her was actually a tiny thin straw. It took Sarah a second to figure out what was going on and it only fully dawned on her the reality of it as Tallia leaned forward and brought the straw up to her nose. With one sharp inhale from the female the powder line disappeared.

Sarah tried not to openly gape as the female tipped her head back and sat there for a moment even though inside she was screaming "I can't believe she just did that! Right next to me!"

Aboris came back into the room, this time carrying the same little pipe that Sarah had used last time she was here and a box of matches. He had already filled it with elf moss for her. Sarah tried not to really think about what she was doing as she took the pipe from him and lit up the moss, watching as it turned red and the earthy taste filled her mouth and throat. Was their entire medical knowledge down here built around what in the Aboveground would be considered illegal drugs? Sarah shook that thought from her head because she knew if she didn't she would feel ashamed of herself and stop. With the impending dinner, she couldn't afford to stop though and so inhaled once more in an attempt to think very little at all.

X

He wasn't a bad person.

He paid his bills on time, worked five days a week eight hours a day. He always remembered his loved ones' birthdays, never missed one. He had done volunteer work in the past and had given to charities regularly. He had done everything he could to be there for his wife and daughter and son.

He wasn't a bad person, so Roger couldn't figure out why all this was happening to him.

Karen had come into his life so suddenly. He had gone from being a single father to a teenage daughter to having a wife, and upon the birth of his son Toby, it had felt like he had had a proper family again.

Then in one night, he had nothing. No daughter, no son.

Now it felt as though he didn't have a wife anymore either. He had a suspect living with him in his home. Karen had lied about the visits to the counselor. Her story to the police hadn't made sense. She rarely looked him in the eye and had little to say to him these days. She was so wrapped up in herself she hadn't paid his own mourning much mind at all. Who knew where she was actually going at night? What was he supposed to do?

"Once again, Mr. Williams, you say she leaves your home around ten at night and won't return till close to one?"

Roger looked up at Sheriff Franklin from the spot on the floor that held his interest. "T-that's right."

"She told you that she would meet with a school counselor so late at night for so long and you believed her?" the man asked, looking at Roger like he was a fool.

Roger wanted to be angry with the sheriff for giving him a look like that, but the man was right to do so. He had been foolish for believing a claim like that. "I was willing to believe anything she told me I guess. She was so convincing in her lie Sheriff. But after I talked to the counselor… I don't know what to do! I'm at my wit's end." he confessed, running a hand over his clammy face as tears pushed at the back of his eyes.

X

"You hardly ate anything at all tonight."

"Guess I just wasn't hungry."

"Would you like me to have the cook make you something now?"

"No."

Sarah sat on the chair before her vanity so she could make sure she was taking all the pins out of her hair for the night. Since she was almost never allowed to wear it down this had practically become routine for her, as much as eating, bathing or pretending to care about anything Jareth said to her had become routine. She practically felt like a zombie. After what had happened this afternoon first with Clora and Ishapell and then with Jareth's "pep talk" about the counsel she was now just going through the motions waiting for tomorrow night to come so she could learn the way out from her nightmare. She didn't care about the pins really, and she hadn't cared about eating supper, and she didn't care about the way Jareth was leaning against the door of her walk-in closet watching her closely like he was studying what order she was removing the pins in or something.

The elf moss was starting to wear off, but it had done a wonderful job, filling her with a numbing calm that had helped her to keep quiet and docile all through the meal. No one had spoken more than two words to her and she had said even less. The only downside to the meal being that Jareth had been staring pointedly at her just about all through it and had refused to let her hold Toby in her lap during like he normally would.

The second she had sat down next to him and looked over at him through the fog in her eyes his focus on her had sharpened like he had instantly known why she was as calm as she was.

The rest of the dinner seemed hazy to her. She had just been lost in her own mind for a while. She had thought of school mostly, and how if she were not here in this enchanted castle playing queen to a powerful and albeit handsome fae king she would be in school, learning things far more interesting and important than how to wave. She would have taken lunch with the few friends she had, sat through all her classes doodling on her notebooks and trying hard not to stare at the clock as she waited for school to let out so drama club would start. She had loved drama club, and they had been talking about putting on a series of skits for the local elementary school kids before she had left- ha, as if she had left, of her own free will. She wondered if she had gotten the part she had wanted of Snow White. No doubt if she had they had already given it away to someone else. They would have had to. She wondered if her friends missed her, and who was missing her more than others.

Sarah was so lost in her reflections of earlier that she hadn't realized that she had started combing her hair or that Jareth had moved over to her till he had taken the comb out of her hand and had stood behind her, brushing her hair himself as he looked at her through the mirror. "Where are you, Sarah?" he asked. "You've been acting like your miles away from here."

"I think I might just be tired is all. It's been a long day."

Jareth scowled at her in the mirror's reflection and if he hadn't been in fact standing behind her she might have shrunk back. "Elf moss can indeed make a person tired."

Sarah met his stare in the mirror then. Was he mad at her for going to supper in a drugged stupor? She had seen him use the stuff himself before when he had somehow hurt his leg and torso. Instead of rising to his bait Sarah simply shrugged.

What was she supposed to say though? "Sorry, Jareth I guess I'm just miserable because I miss my friends and my life Aboveground and still curse you for bringing me here so the only way I can stand being around you for very long is to be somewhat sedated"? Yeah and maybe by morning, she would be able to walk again if she tried that.

X

Jareth could see the faraway look on Sarah's face even through the mirror's reflection. It had been hanging around her face all afternoon and she showed no signs of losing it anytime soon. She was a slave to her thoughts as much as she was to the elf moss's effects and she looked all the gloomier for it. He wished he could sweep her over to the bed and help take her mind off what was troubling her, but as far as he knew she was still on her monthly so he still had to hold to his promise. He swore to himself the next time he offered her a gift not to just hand her a blank check.

She had obviously paid the healer a visit after his visit to her in his throne room. When she had shown up to dinner he had seen in just a glance that she was drugged from the way her pupils were dilated and from the incredibly calm demeanor she sported. He couldn't chance her relying on drugs as a crutch to curb her spirit at times. First, he loved her spirit too much to see her do so to herself, but secondly, no matter how docile she acted it was still considered gravely impolite to show up to dinner drugged when everyone else was fully sober. Not to mention the fact that once she started meeting others of the fae, including his mother and the counsel she would have to have her wits at their sharpest.

Jareth ran the brush through her long dark hair to comfort both her nerves and his own. Tomorrow she would have to continue her lessons with Rally, there was just no getting around that. She would probably be mad about that, but enough time had been wasted already.

"Jareth?"

She had surprised him by initiating speech since she had not done so for most of the night. And he had been surprised to find himself pulled out of his own head. "Hmm?"

"My hair has been brushed for some time now," she pointed out to him.

Jareth saw that she was indeed correct about that and placed the brush back down on the vanity before her. As he leaned down to do so this placed him right next to her ear and he turned and kissed the shell of it affectionately, noticing when a slight shiver swept over Sarah. A week ago, he might have thought her to be cold, but now he was becoming aware of her body and he knew that her ears were sensitive to his touch. He couldn't help but grin slightly at that knowledge.

Sarah reacted no more to him but for that single shiver though as she completely ignored him, sliding out of her chair and moving around him to the other side of her dressing room to start picking out a nightgown.

Jareth watched her as she moved about, pushing the hanging nightgowns over one by one, not even considering some of the more fetching ones that he had gotten for her. She was still wearing her blue and white gown she had picked out this morning, and Jareth couldn't help but appreciate the way it clung to her torso and waist, hiding what he knew to be slender and shapely legs underneath all its skirts. Not being able to see them at all only made him want to even more. He wanted most right now to see them wrapped around his waist as he pounded into her, driving them both towards a release that he desperately wanted and needed.

Jareth walked up behind her as she selected something at last from the mass of nightclothes he had bestowed upon her, taking it from her hands before she could even notice that he had moved up from her and setting it aside without any care as he wrapped his arms around her as if to hold her while his hands went to work on the web of pearl buttons that kept up the back of the gown. "I wish for you to join me in my own bed tonight," he informed her.

Sarah allowed him to hold her as he undid the buttons of her dress without protest but a slight frown still showed around her eyes. "I'm still having my time of the month."

"How many days have you been on your period now?" he asked very bluntly.

He fought to hold back his laugh when Sarah's jaw dropped and her face turned possibly the most scarlet color he had ever seen despite her slight fog. "I- wha- I-How can you ask me that?" She snapped, completely flabbergasted at his bluntness on what seemed to be a touchy issue for her. He found it to be adorable and endearing that she was so innocent and so easily knocked for six. It made him want to corrupt her… even more so.

"How much more time do you think it will take?" he asked, cursing once more the promise she had made him hold to.

"I-I don't know, a couple more days maybe."

This time it was his turn to frown. "It's already been three days."

She pushed against his chest to distance herself but he tightened his hold on her, which only upset her more. "You promised!" she hissed at him.

And he would forever curse doing so. As much as he longed to break his word right now, he was bound tightly by his honor to it. He unfastened the last button on the dress and released his disgruntled wife, who immediately stepped back out of his reach. "If I find out that you are lying to me…" he hissed.

"I'm not!" Sarah snapped in frustration.

"You better not be."

X

Jareth turned on his heel and stalked out of the dressing room, leaving a very vexed girl in his wake. "You can get yourself undressed," he snapped before exiting the room.

Sarah rolled her eyes at that. He had already undone all the buttons of the dress for her so that would be a snap and the corset she wore today was tied up the sides. She took what relish she could at his failed parting shot and proceeded to undress with ease. It was the smallest of victories but one that she savored none the least.

After she had on the mid-length light nightgown she had picked out she left the dressing room, glad to see that Jareth wasn't in her room but had no doubt retired to his own, the door between their rooms being closed. Fine by her, she decided as she went over to her own bed and pulled back the covers. She was surprised to find a note there waiting for her. She could tell from the handwriting that Jareth had left it, having taken a piece of parchment from her little desk. He had kept it short and to the point.

 _You're still to sleep in my bed tonight_

Sarah crumpled the letter up in her fist and tossed it to the side, standing next to her bed as she debated. If she went into his room and slept in his bed tonight no doubt he would consider the final victory of the night to be his and justifiably so. Like no matter what he said to her or how angry he made her she still had to bend to his will or something. It would put him in a right twist if she ignored the letter and just went to sleep.

However, that right twist he would be in would no doubt cause loss of her garden privileges at the very least. Since that was most necessary for her escape, she couldn't really consider that one an option.

As much as her pride screamed and clawed against her for it, she turned and made her way across her room to the door adjoining Jareth's, only to be stunned when she found it locked. Had he changed his mind or something after writing the letter? No, much more likely the fiend had done so for his own amusement.

Sarah hit her fist hard once against the door, ready to let a curse or two fly before turning around and going back to her bed to sleep, but the lock clicked free and the door opened before she could have the chance.

Jareth had already changed into his own nightclothes, powdery-blue silken pants with a matching button-up nightshirt that flowed over his pale skin like water. Somehow, he looked just as appealing as he did arrogant in his current state of dress, though the arrogance was probably more to do with the way he seemed to look down his nose at her than the fabric. He leaned against the door frame but gave her no room to stroll in past him. "Yes?" he asked as though he had no idea what she was knocking on his door for.

Sarah scowled up at him. "You left a note on my bed saying I was to sleep here tonight, but you had the door locked." As if he didn't already know all of this.

"Oh, well if you wish to sleep in my bed tonight all you need to do is ask for my permission."

Rage boiled through her at that. So that was his game, was it! Not only would he make her bend to his will when she desperately didn't want to, but he would make her ask permission to do so on top of it. Talk about salt in the wounds! Everything in her screamed at her to tell him where to go and march herself back to her own bed but despite that the voices telling her that if she did that everything she had worked for so far would be for not and she could kiss her escape goodbye screamed at her the loudest.

His eyes sharpened on her, daring her to not ask his permission.

How could she bring herself to ask though? She had doubts that even she was that good of an actress. Feeling like she was trapped in a stalemate between Jareth and herself, she could only stand there, glaring at the floor so she wouldn't glare at him.

Jareth let the silence hang for a moment or two before he finally spoke, sounding more amused than anything else. "Sometimes I forget how utterly shy you are, very well you may reside in my bed tonight."

Sarah could feel herself prickle all over. As if she didn't want to ask because she was shy! None the less she stepped forward when Jareth reached out and ushered her into his room.

 _Tomorrow night you'll see the worm._

 _Tomorrow night you'll see the worm._

 _Tomorrow night you'll see the worm._

 _Tomorrow night you'll see the worm._

She just kept repeating this to herself as she walked toward Jareth's bed like it was a death march. It helped some, but she still shrugged off Jareth hand when he placed it on the back of her shoulder blade, which earned her a warning look as he turned her to face him when they reached the bed, practically trapping her between him and the side of it. He held her elbows in both of his hands so she was forced to both face him and stand close to him, his body only a mere inch or less from hers.

"Will you not kiss your king goodnight?" he asked, almost sounding innocent in his request.

He was more a king than a husband to her tonight, commanding rather than asking, domineering everything she did or thought or felt. Although in Jareth's mind a husband and king were the same thing. Sarah could see no point in being queen if it just meant she would be bossed around all the time.

Jareth didn't wait for her response, leaning into the distance between them, his hand releasing Sarah's arm to cup the back of her head the moment she leaned back from him, pulling her forward to him till their lips met and applying pressure to the back of her head even then till she was forced to open her mouth lest she knock teeth with him as he wrapped his other arm around her lower back and pulled her flush against him in a passionate kiss. His tongue entered her and she could feel an obvious erection through the thin nightclothes they wore pushing at her seeking its own entry.

For a second she panicked, sure that he was about to force her again, but he had promised not to. She hoped that his promise still meant something despite the warm rush that she felt in her own loins as he pushed himself against her again and slowed her thoughts with his skill of kissing.

She hadn't even noticed that she had moved back, just that suddenly her leg hit the back of the bed and Jareth encouraged her further back, breaking off the kiss and releasing her so she could fall back onto the bed. Sarah watched as he reached down to cup his arousal through the glossy fabric, his eyes full of both dark promises and threats as he looked down at her.

Sarah backed up from him a little, moving further onto the bed. "J-Jareth you promised," she reminded him again, some of her earlier bravado gone.

Jareth nodded at that. "I am aware of that, Sarah. If I wasn't I would have taken you back in your dressing room and again on the floor somewhere by now."

Sarah watched with wide eyes as he squeezed his shaft through his night clothes once before reaching up and undoing the buttons of his nightshirt, revealing a little more of his pale alabaster skin with every button. "I promised you I would not take you without your spoken permission till your menstruation is over, but that doesn't mean I can't touch you and be touched by you." Jareth shrugged off his shirt, leaving his upper body bare and looking just as smooth as the fabric had seemed. Sarah's heartbeat kicked up a notch at the sight of all that skin naked to her eyes.

Jareth climbed onto the bed, traveling with the same ease a cat would demonstrate up the length of her body. Her hands flew up to his shoulders of their own violation to stop him before he could reach her lips, but his focus shifted in less than a second and as her hands landed on his smooth, warm skin he dropped down onto her, lining her body with his as his weight pressed him firmly against her, his tongue running over the crook of her neck before his lips locked onto her and he sucked her sensitive flesh there.

As her back arched and he surrounded her and fogged up her mind just as powerfully as the elf moss from before had Sarah fought to hold back a moan that was flowing up her throat. Through sheer force of will, she managed, but she wasn't sure how long she could last if Jareth kept making her body tingle like that.

"Who knows?" Jareth whispered in a deep voice into her ear, "Perhaps before the night is over you'll be begging me to take all you have to give."

Sarah gasped as his lips found hers and his body arched against her again.


	22. Chapter 22

Beta for this chapter is The Art of Suicide

X

"Foul" was far too mellow of a descriptive.

So was "treacherous".

Mavid yawned again behind his hand in hopes of covering it up, practically falling asleep on his mounted Pegasus. It had been the very earliest of morning when he had woken to the sound of someone banging on his chamber door, only to find Jareth.

The king had been fully dressed and outfitted in riding wear, tan breeches tucked into black ankle boots and a cream-colored riding jacket that was simultaneously tattered and elegant. He'd worn a sour expression upon his face as he shortly informed Mavid that he was to get dressed quickly because they were going on a small hunt.

Apparently, Jareth felt the need to kill something and Mavid could only think that it probably had something to do with the queen. The last time he'd seen Jareth had been at meal time and he'd been entirely docile- though a trifle miffed that the queen was obviously drugged.

Perhaps "abysmal" was a fitting word for describing the mood of his closest friend this early morning.

As much as he would have preferred his sleep, it would have been out of place for him to deny the king's wishes or allow Jareth to wander the Labyrinth's forests alone.

So here he was, the sun just moments from rising as he followed Jareth on horseback through the nettled and thorny underbrush of the Sprite Hold Forest- or as the goblins affectionately referred to it, the "Oooh sharp sticks land!"- as they hunted for anything stupid enough to also be up at this early hour.

Jareth said nothing to Mavid about why he was angry thus far, keeping all conversation, little that there was, strictly about the hunt. They had been out and about for about two hours now and had yet to spot a single living thing, much to both their growing frustrations.

The Pegasus ponies they rode moved soundlessly despite the thick brush and the thorny plants that scratched at their legs. Even though their hooves made no noise, it was obvious from the way they threw their heads about and the way they would sometimes move to back up from the path they were on that they didn't want to be out here any more than Mavid did. His own mount demonstrated her protest once more by coming to a complete stop, hesitating even further when he urged her on. He couldn't blame her, he had had quite enough of this too.

He kicked his heels into her sides lightly to force her up next to Jareth. The blonde fae hardly glanced at him as his mismatched eyes scanned the darkened forest.

"You want to tell me what we are really doing out here in the middle of an empty forest?"

"Hunting," was the sharp reply he received. "Be silent before you scare everything away."

Mavid tried not to outright roll his eyes at that, having to close them for a second or two just in case. "Even if there was anything out here to scare away, which there's not, I would at least like to point out that we never stopped in the armory to grab any weapons to hunt with. Let's say we did, in fact, happen upon something. Let's say for the sake of argument that we should happen upon a rabbit. Do you propose that we simply run it down with the mares and try to get them to trample it to death?"

Jareth balked at this bit of rationality, but only momentarily as he shrugged it off. "You always carry at least one dagger with you, you could kill it with that."

While it was true that Mavid did happen to have two daggers holstered to his right side, those were just for Jareth's and his own protection. Jareth knew as well as he did that he wasn't about to try to run down a damn rabbit with nothing but a hand dagger when his sheer survival did not demand it so he didn't bother responding to his friend's absurd justification as the horses came to a pause in front of a particularly thick thorn patch.

"All I'm saying is there are better places for us to be at this moment then on a fool's mission in the middle of a deserted forest… like in bed… blanketed by women."

Jareth let out a frustrated growl and whipped his head around to peg Mavid with a glare the male wasn't expecting. "Women are nothing but the ultimate torture device created by the gods. The last thing I want to see right now is another woman."

Mavid held none of the perplexities he felt from reaching his face as he took a moment to absorb what had just happened. "I take it you had another fight with the queen?" he asked slowly.

Jareth cursed under his breath and turned away. "No, just an ongoing one."

There was a long and profound silence as the sun started to rise and the horses continued to stand in place beneath them, stopped by the thick brush but not yet commanded by their riders to try a different way.

Finally, Jareth spoke up again. "She has been refusing me… in bed."

Mavid frowned at that. "So then just take another female into your bed. As the king, you are more than allowed to do so. If you don't want to have to look outside of the Labyrinth you could just use the wet nurse."

Jareth shook his head, his blonde wisps of hair practically floating on the breeze. "I don't want another female. I want Sarah. I want my wife," he stubbornly insisted.

Mavid shrugged and reached back into his horse's saddlebag, taking out some rolling papers and a pouch of tobacco. He set the stuff on the saddle between his legs and went to work making a make-shift cigarette for himself, and then another one for Jareth. Tobacco couldn't be grown in the Underground, poisoned the earth too much, but there was plenty of it to be found on the black magic market. Jareth took it from him and Mavid pulled out a box of matches from the saddle bag, Jareth placed the cigarette between his lips and leaned over to Mavid as the male brought the struck match up to the end. The tip glowed red and Jareth pulled back, inhaling deep to try to calm his nerves. Mavid lit his own next and did the same, feeling his body relax a little more the instant he inhaled and felt the satisfying warmth and tickle of the smoke seeping down his throat.

"Then force her," he shrugged. "She'll stop resisting once she realizes that it gets her nowhere. They all eventually do." He exhaled and watched as the smoke formed a cloud of grey in front of his face, hanging around for a moment before waning.

"It's embarrassing that I should have to force sex upon my own wife at all," Jareth grumbled. "I can't even do that right now though. It's been about four days since we last were intimate."

That gave Mavid pause. He looked up at Jareth, who was purposefully looking anywhere other than at him right now as he brought his cigarette away from his lips to speak. "What do you mean it's been four days since? I would have figured you two would be pretty hot and heavy, new lovers and all; not to mention I thought you would be trying to get her in a family way."

Jareth let out a sigh. "Yes, but I was forced to give her my word that I would not touch her while she was menstruating without her expressed permission."

Mavid frowned in even deeper confusion. "Clearly you have left me out of the loop on your 'marital bliss' more than I figured you would. How did she ever get your word for something like that?"

Jareth took a long drag from his cigarette. "Never promise a woman anything she wants Mavid, that's all I have to say about that. If you do promise her anything she wants then make sure ahead of time that all she wants is to have sex with you all the time."

Mavid couldn't help but laugh outright and hearty at that and even Jareth smiled at the male's amusement.

"I will take such a lesson to heart," Mavid laughed, starting to collect himself. "So, then I take it you were in a bad mood because…"

Jareth flicked the dead ashes from the end of his cigarette. "Because I tried to get her expressed permission last night… and I failed."

Mavid didn't comment to that, mostly because he wanted more than anything else to shout at Jareth for waking him up in the middle of the night and dragging him all the way out here for that just because he refused to break his word and he refused to use a different female to release his sexual frustrations on. As close as they were at times, that would still be really toeing the line that forever existed between them as master and servant. Instead, he simply tried to suppress yet another yawn.

The sound of a leaf rustling drew both of their attentions and they turned their gazes to trace it, both being caught by surprise to see a dryad in the distance about a hundred feet away from them. It was a female, with skin a soft green in color and a willowy body. Her hair was what attracted their attention, falling down the backs of her legs in a thick brush of rich green leaves. Like all dryads and nymphs, she wore no clothes upon her slim body, allowing both Jareth and Mavid to look upon her.

She looked over and noticed them the same time they noticed her and she turned wide eyes the color of almonds upon them as she startled. She turned around in her spot, sparing them another surprised but unafraid glance as she took pause as though daring them to chase. She then took off back into the thicket the way she had come.

Mavid braced himself against the urge to give chase after her. Dryads were extremely hard to catch but if you managed to do so they were known to be superb lovers. Mavid steeled himself against the impulse but nonetheless promised himself to go on a private hunt of his own for the dryad soon. Tonight, if possible.

He turned back to Jareth, who looked as though he had had to hold himself against the chase as well. The king shook his head as if to clear it from the very thought. He let out a sigh and pinched the bridge of his nose, a gesture Mavid had seen him do probably billions of times by now. "We won't find any game to hunt right now," Jareth conceded.

"Should we turn back?" Mavid asked, keeping the hope out of his tone.

There was a pause, but Jareth eventually nodded his head.

X

Sarah wanted to scream, or cry, or possibly both. She was tired and she was once more being subjugated to the unbearable lessons that Rally insisted she needed to learn to be someone who was worth anything at all.

To think that she had once believed that a female would be just fine living her entire life without knowing how to properly fan herself.

How wrong she was!

"Remember, hold the fan an inch or so from the base with just your thumb and forefinger, never more than that. And make sure when you hold it the picture of the screen is facing out away from you. If you were to hold it at your side the etching should be facing your leg."

Sarah tried not to speak at all during her lessons, finding that less yelling occurred that way. Honestly, she was barely paying attention to anything the little girl said, for the most part ignoring her 'helpful hints' and entirely ignoring Ishapell and Clora as they stood off to the side watching over the lesson as they always did. Her mind was still focused on the previous night.

 _Sarah gasped as his lips found hers and his body arched against her again. He smelled wonderful, as usual, a deep and rich smell like the autumn wind mixed with the natural musk of testosterone. His skin was smoother than worn stone and almost just as firm to the touch under her hands as she held his shoulders. One of his hands had gripped her hair, pulling her head back enough for a better angle to kiss her as his other hand stroked over her side from breast to hip just over the thin nightgown she wore._

 _He kissed her deep and thoroughly, his tongue sliding over her own in warm, slow and smooth strokes that made her tingle every now and again between her legs. The feeling only grew more with every slow steady arch of his body against hers, his arousal sliding over her in a way that was just right._

 _Jareth pulled back from the kiss and although she certainly hadn't intended to, it didn't go unnoticed by either of them when her head lifted slightly despite his hold on her hair as if following him in his momentary retreat. He grinned down at her at that, showing and goading her while he had indeed noticed and she blushed furiously in embarrassment._

 _Jareth moved to rest on his elbows above her, her body flush against him and he had met her eyes in a dark and level stare as he had slowly and deliberately moved his body against her in a slow thrust. Sarah gasped slightly despite herself and fought against her own body not to arch against him in return._

 _That blasted grin returned to his face as he witnessed her struggle and she turned her face from him, but he leaned in and found her lips once more, offering a little more of the kiss from earlier before drawing back again. "Say you want me," he whispered to her, dipping down to focus those skilled lips on her neck as he slowly arched into her again._

 _Sarah felt like she was on fire, although that was probably because she knew she was currently playing with it. Truth be told she hadn't fought against him nearly as much as she knew she probably should have up till now. Her mind bit at her with thoughts of how exactly he had lured her in here in the first place despite her anger at him._

 _Jareth arched into her once more, leaning forward to reclaim her lips once more. "Say it," he coaxed softly._

 _His lips were soft and pillowy from kissing her and seemed to call to her to touch them with her own again, Sarah closed her eyes and pulled hard on the last string of self-restraint she had so she could turn her head away from him just before contact was made. "No," she gasped._

 _As skilled as he was and as good as he could make her feel when she was touching him, her pride just couldn't take the hit he was demanding of it. She had already had to play nice to him to not have him lock her up in this damn castle away from her only means of escape. She had had to cow-tow to him on just about everything from what she wore to what she said and did, and he had even made her ask him to enter his room when she had never wanted to do so in the first place. But then for him to expect her to take back the one scrap of power she had over him and just concede to him doing what he would with her body… it was the straw that broke the camel's back. Her body screamed at her in protest, but everything else about her had been screaming up till the word "no" passed over her lips._

 _Jareth froze over her and she kept her head turned away and eyes closed as she braced herself for anything that would happen next. She could feel Jareth's eyes boring into her as if he expected her to laugh and tell him that she was just kidding. When she continued to even refuse to look at him though, tense as she waited for anything from him to start screaming at her up to him hitting her for denying him._

 _He did neither, but pushed himself from her and moved off the bed. The jerking movements of his body and the eerie silence that he moved with suggested that he was indeed very pissed off. Sarah looked over and watched in stunned and cautious silence as he went over to the wardrobe he kept and swung one of the doors open like he didn't care if he tore it from its hinges in the process. He never fully looked at her but she could see from the glances of his profile as he started to dress that his jaw was set tight and a harsh frown had fixed itself on his face._

 _She thought about asking him where he was going, but very quickly dismissed the notion. She didn't want him to direct that anger at her._

 _Once Jareth was dressed he stomped over to the door, the heeled boots he wore sounding like cracks of thunder on the stone floor as he went._

 _Sarah sat up in bed, pulling the blanket up to her lap as she watched and waited for him to suddenly change his mind and take his anger out on her._

 _Jareth paused at the door as if he wanted to say or do something, and she braced herself, but he simply shoved the door open and slammed it behind himself without a single word. At first, Sarah had been terrified, thinking that maybe he was going to get something to hurt her with more than his fists would be able to manage. Her skin prickled when she remembered what Aboris had told her about the things he had done to Carrie and her stomach churned with the fear that maybe he had left to go fetch Mavid to have him help in hurting her or something. Sarah sat in the middle of the massive bed since hiding would have been utterly useless in this room, and simply waited, listening to the silence and hoping that it wouldn't be replaced by the sound of footsteps in the hall._

 _After a couple minutes of nothing happening her fear began to ebb and anger slowly crept in to take its place. Jareth had no right to be angry with her for refusing him! It was her body, despite what he thought, and she had every right to refuse to allow him to treat her like a sex doll. She didn't know where he had gone or what he intended to do, but she took some happiness in the knowledge that despite all the power and rights he claimed to hold over her, she still had been able to refuse him… even if it was for no other reason than to keep his word being the reason he had listened. The point was that she had said no and stuck to her guns._

 _A small grin lit up her face then. "For my will is as strong as yours," she whispered to only herself before flipping over and preparing to go to sleep as her body calmed down and recollected itself. The day's victory had gone to her after all._

Startled out of her thoughts by Rally slapping her closed fan against Sarah's wrist, Sarah turned her fan back around the right way and tried to pretend to be focusing on her lesson that she couldn't have given a rat's tail about.

"We'll try a few more holds and then move on to proper eye contact." Rally informed her.

She held back her annoyed sigh at the prospect of yet another silly and pointless lesson being forced down her throat.

She about jumped out of her skin when the doors to the lounge room they were practicing in were pushed open a crack and a remarkably thin goblin entered. "Package arrived today, 'isses," it announced.

Rally scowled at it, the expression looking very out of place on her nine-year-old looking face. "Packages should be taken to the king's study you fool. You are interrupting our lesson for nothing!"

The goblin shrugged, obviously not caring any more than Sarah did. "Package not 'or king, 'or king cousin."

The goblin pushed the door open wider. From where she was standing in the room Sarah was the last to see what it was behind the door, but her heart jumped into her throat when Ishapell let out an ear-splitting scream and she turned from the door to the female. Despite her scream, she looked absolutely delighted as her hands flew to her mouth to hide her grin.

"Really! For a female to conduct herself so." Rally admonished.

Sarah turned back to the door to see a younger boy standing there behind the goblin, looking rather confused and worried. He looked to be no older than sixteen! He wore a simple tan tunic and brown leggings with a brown cord wrapped around his waist. Sarah could tell that he was very thinly built and his face bordered on feminine with how pointed it was. His hair was a dark brown, just a few shades lighter than her own and it hung long all around his head so it almost covered his eyes. His eyelashes were incredibly thick, and his eyes were a deep brown. Sarah could tell right away that he wasn't like Jareth and the others. He was like her, a human.

Ishapell muttered an apology and rushed over to the door, throwing her arms around the boy, who seemed to instantly calm down when he saw her and returned her hug.

"Tarik" Ishapell sighed happily into the young man's thin neck.

 _Tarik! Wasn't that the name of her so-called pet?!_

Sarah could only assume she was wrong about that as the boy smiled sweetly and placed his cheek against Ishapell's. She was glowing as she stepped back from the embrace, resuming her poise as she clasped her hands together in front of her, but her eyes kept their warmth as she kept her focus trained on the young man. "Everyone, this is my Tarik. Tarik, this is my distant cousin Clora, Jareth's wife Sarah, and her instructor Miss Rally," she introduced politely. She looked over and Sarah's stomach sank as Ishapell made eye contact with her. "Thank you so much for making it possible for him to come here."

Sarah felt like she was in shock.

He was a human… pet?! Sarah had envisioned something like a dog or a cat… she would have expected a full-grown fire breathing dragon before she would have thought of a human!

This place… oh, how she hated this place!

Sarah couldn't stop staring at the boy standing next to the Fae. Jareth had to have known about this. That thought just made her angry and she fought hard to keep any expression whatsoever off her face. Jareth would have had to have known what kind of pet Ishapell owned. Somehow, he had to have. No wonder Ishapell found it so insulting to have to wait on Sarah, as far as she had been concerned Sarah had been little more than the equivalent of Jareth's pet or something. It would have been like she had been made to wait hand and foot on someone else's parakeet rather than live her own life for a time. Jareth should have warned her!

 _It's nice to finally meet you, Ishapell speaks well of you._

 _I hope you had a safe trip here, never mind the goblins they're practically harmless._

 _It's good to see another human who isn't a baby._

All of those passed through the back of Sarah's mind as things to say in response to meeting the guy and any of them would have been better than what she said. "This is the one who hates getting baths?"

Clora laughed heartily and Rally brought the fan up to hide her face behind it like she was embarrassed for Sarah. Tarik turned wide eyes to Ishapell like he couldn't believe she had told and she blushed till her cheeks were cherry red in color. "Um, er… yes."

There was a long silence in the room, aside from Clora's snickering. Torik turned back to Sarah and, careful to never make eye contact with her, bent over into a low bow at the waist. "It is my pleasure to meet you, your highness."

Clora giggled somewhere behind Sarah. "My, doesn't he just melt in your mouth?"

This time Torik's cheeks turned red and he straightened back up, moving himself partially behind Ishapell like a shy child would.

"If we could continue with our lesson," Rally huffed, snapping the fan she held open and closed. "You can all pay attention to the being later."

Sarah would have stormed out of the room right then if she could have, she was so mad about being surprised like this. However, if she ran out of her lessons Jareth could take her garden privileges away… if he hadn't already in response to her denying him last night, something else to be mad at him for.

X

The journey was slow going, but he knew the way as well as he knew himself and so he knew he would make it to the center of the Labyrinth well before nightfall. The Path Master continued to make his way along the cobblestones of the vast maze, a purple stem attached to a red leaf held tight in his teeth. He had to make sure to carry it by its stem because the leaf itself was covered in a highly potent sleeping potion that the Underground Women had concocted. The hardest part for him wasn't the journey, but the temptation to eat the delicious looking leaf.

He endured both hardships with ease though because he knew how important it was to make it to the castle where that innocent girl would be awaiting him. He would do all he could for Carrie's sake to help her offspring. Call him a gentle soul, a real softy, according to the missus, but he couldn't let the Goblin King keep a gentle and kind soul like hers trapped in that cold cryptic castle that he had constructed at the center of the Labyrinth when he arrived.

The worm reached the outer wall of the Goblin City in no time. He would find a safe place in the garden to stay with the leaf till nightfall and hope that the girl would be able to make her way outside tonight alone.

X

It was nearing supper time, but Jareth honestly didn't want to eat. Not that he wasn't hungry, he was, but he didn't want to face Sarah yet. She had been kept busy with her etiquette lessons all day so he hadn't had to worry about running into her. Mavid was with him still, but the male was obviously distracted. No doubt that dryad was still on his mind… especially with the arrival of Ishapell's pet. Jareth had anticipated his friend's sourness toward the prospect of his cousin having a male of her own in the castle, but he had promised Sarah to make it happen and she had upheld her end of the bargain to the best of her ability, even now surprisingly. He still expected Rally to inform him at any second that Sarah had thrown another fit and refused to learn anything she had to teach her. She hadn't though, enduring the lessons still even though she hated them.

Jareth leaned back in his chair in his study, hardly even looking at the bill Rally had given him for her services thus far. It was substantial, but not compared to his wealth, and worth every farthing if Sarah was learning. With the meeting with the council just three days away, he wasn't going to complain about Sarah not complaining.

Mavid sat across the large desk from him, but rather than doing paperwork, the male was leaning back on the back legs of his seat. He had one of his hunting knives out and was balancing it on the tip of his middle finger, the point of the blade against his skin. Jareth watched him for a moment, letting out a sigh when it was obvious the knife wasn't about to fall.

Mavid looked up from his balancing act when Jareth got up from his desk and paced, stretching. "Going somewhere?"

Jareth shrugged. "I'll take my supper up here I suppose. You may stay or go down to the dining room if you wish."

Mavid thought about it a moment, then shook his head. "I'm not going to eat in the dining room tonight. Actually, I was wondering if you needed my services any longer this evening?"

So, he was thinking of the dryad. "No, I won't be needing you tonight so if you want to go… hunting, then feel free," Jareth smirked.

Mavid returned his knowing smirk and flipped the blade over in his hand before rising to his feet and leaving the room.

As they always seemed to, Jareth's thoughts turned to Sarah. He still felt miffed that she would refuse him when she had obviously felt his touch to be pleasurable. The way her body responded to arousal was intoxicating, to say the least, but her pride still stopped her from relenting to him. She was as stubborn and prideful as he was, and although he found that appealing it was tiring for her to constantly practice those charming attributes on him.

He could remember countless other women; fae, human, sprite, nymph… no matter the species they all had found pleasure in his skills. Many had offered to give him anything he wanted just to be with him again. Even still there was a gracious plenty of females of substantial beauty, wealth, and breeding that would have leapt at the chance to be in his bed, much less his wife. So why couldn't the one female he wanted in such a way want him back? It didn't just rub his ego the wrong way… it ripped it to pieces and left it laying on the floor.

Jareth could feel the scowl creep onto his face and shook his head like that would clear it, but it didn't. He wasn't hungry, and he decided he wouldn't have supper brought to his office tonight. He suddenly didn't want to be in his office anymore tonight. He thought about turning into his owl form and taking wing, which always helped him calm down, but as he headed towards the window he had another idea and turned back to exit through the door.

He figured that he would find his son in his nursery since supper wasn't for another couple of minutes, and sure enough, he was right. When he entered the nursery, he found Tallia was just finishing changing his son, who was making quite the fuss. She startled when she saw him enter the room and hurried to finish what she was doing and move out of his way.

"I was just getting him ready for supper now, your highness," she mumbled quickly as she stepped back out of Jareth's way. Toby was laying on his back in a now fresh diaper, his face lighting up as his eyes found Jareth. Jareth couldn't help but smile back as he scooped his son up into his arms. "Feel all clean now, young one?"

Toby babbled in response, stringing together half words and noises. He was speaking a little more coherently every day. Before long he would be making complete sentences. He was already walking around decently well. And he was growing just as fast. Jareth took one of his son's blonde strands between his fingers. The tip of it was long enough that it was starting to curl, he would need a trim soon. He was old enough that he would need a Mavid of his own soon. Jareth probably should have considered making that happen already, but he had been preoccupied. Mavid had been purchased by his parents from a peasant family when he had been a little younger than Toby. He would have to see to setting something up.

Jareth brought his face up to Toby's, breathing in the baby-smell on his cheek before placing a kiss there. Toby turned his head and placed a kiss on his own cheek in return, which brought the biggest grin to Jareth's face.

"Will you be taking him to supper, highness, or should I do that for you?" Tallia asked, keeping her head down and at least three feet in between them always as was customary.

"Let the cooks know to have our supper brought here. I'll be spending time with my son tonight so you may go until further notice." Jareth dismissed the servant girl.

Tallia nodded her head and retreated from the room like she was nervous just to be in his presence. It wasn't uncommon for others to be nervous around him though so he paid it no mind. He was royalty, after all. It happened. When he had still lived in his parent's kingdom he had once seen a nervous peasant run right in front of a carriage he hadn't seen because he had been trying to move far out of his father's way. The peasant hadn't been killed he didn't think; he'd been alive when some of his father's guards carried him over to the local medic's home.

"So, what do you want to do till the food gets here my prince?" Jareth asked Toby with a smile.

Toby just stared at him like he was waiting for a suggestion.

An idea suddenly came to Jareth and he couldn't help but smile at his own brilliance. Not only had he neglected to see about finding a companion for his son, but there was something else he had overlooked that his son would need in life. The food wouldn't arrive right away and he knew the cooks would simply find him if he wasn't in the nursery again by the time they arrived to serve it. He went to Toby's clothing drawers and pulled out a cover for him to wear that was a light green in color. Once it was on he picked his son back up and carried him on his hip out of the nursery and down the halls of his castle.

Occasionally Toby would have him stop so he could look at something in the halls like an interesting statue or view out of a window, and once a goblin that managed to get his head stuck in a mouse hole while his friends debated on the best way to get him out. From the sounds of it, they were going to try to use firecrackers to make the hole bigger. They made it to their destination in practically no time despite the distractions.

"Are you ready for this, my prince?" Jareth asked as he pushed the door to the music room open.

Toby looked in at all the instruments laying around and his eyes grew wide and Jareth knew the second he set him down Toby would go for all the shiny and interesting equipment. He was right.

As soon as Toby's feet hit the ground the child let out a scream of delight and stumbled over to the closest object, being a small snare drum. He first gripped it like he would try to pick it up, but it was too bulky and large for him. Jareth followed him over to it and took a soft mallet from the nearby keyboard, lightly striking the top of the drum with it. Toby's eyes bulged at what he was shown and he immediately reached out for the mallet. Jareth laughed as he handed it over and Toby started to hit the snare drum as thought there was a spider on it he was just determined to kill. It was for that reason that Jareth handed him a soft mallet rather than a drumstick. After a minute or two of that Toby, still carrying the mallet in his little fist, wobbled over to a grand piano and reached up to start hitting the keys on that too.

Jareth laughed and hoisted his son up to sit on the piano bench. Toby stopped his banging when Jareth reached out and quickly played his scales on the piano keys. To which Toby set the mallet down next to him and brought his own hands up to swat at the keys, smiling wide when he saw that what he was doing would make the piano play different sounds. "This is a piano, Toby. It makes music."

Toby seemed utterly enthralled as Jareth ran his fingers over the scales again in a practiced gesture.

"I know something you'll like," Jareth smirked as he moved away from the piano and over to his guitars. He ran his fingers over the electric guitar he purchased off the black magic market. Alas, it was but a novelty. No form of harnessed existed there in the Underground to make it work. Instead, he picked up an older and slightly worn acoustic and carried it back over to where Toby could easily see him without having to squirm around on the bench. Jareth brought the guitar up and played a few notes on it, adjusting the tuning, then started to play a lively little tune that he had known since childhood.

"I'm rolling out of the ferris wheel  
No one looks and no one feels  
But the baby can the baby can  
The way it feels just feeling you  
Holding out and falling out  
But the baby can the baby can  
I'm the jumping man  
I'm the jumping man  
But baby can float  
Baby can drown  
Baby can touch her toes  
Toss her hair  
Makes you feel you're going nowhere  
Baby can dance  
Baby can dance."

Toby grinned as he struck the keys of the piano now and then, adding his own sounds to Jareth's song and taking encouragement when he would look over and see Jareth smiling at him. Jareth was positively bursting with pride for his son, taking to music like a fish to water. All fae enjoyed music and housed some level of talent for it. It was good to see there was enough fae in his son for him to have taken on such a quick liking to it.

"Baby can walk around the town  
Attract a man and cut him down

I'm the shadow man the jumping jack  
The man who can and don't look back  
But the baby can the baby can…"

X

Sarah couldn't remember the last time it had been this quiet at supper. She was seated at her normal spot, like everyone else, which left her with Ishapell being the only one next to her. Who knew where Mavid was. Tallia informed them that Jareth and Toby wouldn't be joining them before leaving as well. Rally never ate supper outside of her rooms, for which Sarah was grateful, so that left Ishapell, Clora, and herself. Ishapell explained to her that since Torik was a pet he wasn't allowed in the dining hall with the rest of them so he was back in her room eating his supper.

As strange as it was, Sarah really wished that Jareth and Mavid were at the dinner table with them. After all, tonight she would be meeting with the worm and the fact that suddenly neither one of them were around just seemed like too much of a lucky break. _What if they were already out in the garden? What if somehow, they knew everything and had already found the Path Master before she could?_ Her mind just kept going back to those "what-if" questions, causing her nerves to just build and build as she pushed her food around her plate without really eating it.

Ishapell and Clora muttered amongst themselves about pointless gossip since the first time Ishapell had tried to start a conversation with Sarah she had been so distracted by her thoughts that all she could give coherently were one word answers.

The meal just dragged by like this, Sarah growing more and more nervous as Jareth's cousins both finished off their meals. Clora politely excused herself, leaving Ishapell with Sarah. The blonde fae turned to Sarah and waited to speak till Sarah finally turned and looked at her. "I was thinking I might take Tarik for a walk in the garden tonight, let him run around a bit…"

Sarah fought hard to hide her grimace at both the way Ishapell spoke of her **human** pet and the fact that she had mentioned going out to the garden tonight.

"I know you like walking around out there, would you care to maybe join us?"

Sarah thought fast. "Um… actually Ishapell, you might not want to take him out into the garden today. The last time I was out there the path was just covered in broken glass and you know how Jareth is about keeping this place clean. I think the goblins might have had a drinking party going on out there or something. It wouldn't be safe."

"Oh… ah, no I suppose not," Ishapell agreed, seeming a little down about it. "That's too bad. I know Tarik would have enjoyed it."

"You know what he probably would enjoy? You could probably take him down to the stables," Sarah offered.

Ishapell thought about it but eventually nodded her head. "Even though the prospect seems to be a choice of wondering through glass or refuse, I'm sure he probably would enjoy that… yes, he likely would enjoy seeing the other animals," Sarah flinched that time but Ishapell didn't even notice. "I shall change my shoes and take him there then. Did you want to come with us?"

And watch as you point out the different animals to him like he was some sort of idiotic and blind chip when he has the capacity to be just as intelligent as you or I?! "Um, no thank you. I'm tired tonight so I think I will likely just turn in. You go ahead."

Ishapell nodded and excused herself from the table, Sarah got up too and they left the dining hall together, separating once they got out into the hall. Sarah was glad that the garden door was on the same side of the castle as her rooms so she didn't have to double back or anything.

As nervous as she was she just couldn't pass up this chance to meet with the Path Master and finally learn how to leave this place.

Sarah reached the garden door and looked around her, studying the shadows as if she would be able to spot if Mavid was there. The worm had told her that Mavid could hide in the shadows, but she had yet to see how. She assumed that it was some sort of glamour. She could see nothing there though, for all that meant, and so went out to the gardens. Although she knew it looked suspicious, she still turned her head this way and that, looking around to see if anyone was there.

"Oye! Down 'ere!" a voice called out to her instantly.

She knew that voice anywhere and spotted the worm sitting on the branch of a little bush right next to the door. She dropped down into a crouching position to be a little more on level with him, a big grin on her face. "I'm so glad to see you!"

"How'r ya holding up, Missy?" the worm asked.

"Fine now that you're here."

"Well I got ya this from those Underground women," the worm smiled as he took hold of the stem of a red leaf that had been sitting next to him in his mouth and moved it closer to her. "Don't touch it!" he shouted when Sarah reached out to take it.

Her hand shot back to her side at the urgency in his voice. "W-why not? Is it poisonous? I don't want to kill anyone!"

"Calm down, Missy, tisn't the death kind of poison, tis the sleeping kind of poison. Just touch the stem and you'll be fine, but if you were to touch the red of the leaf, you'd fall asleep instantly."

Gingerly, Sarah reached out again and was very careful to only touch the purple stem as she brought the leaf back. "What do I do with it then?"

"Would ya be ready t' leave t'morrow night?"

"Oh, yes I would!" Sarah gasped in relief. Her freedom was so close at hand finally. "I'd be ready to leave right now even."

The worm laughed at that. "But you haven't got the baby and everyone's awake."

The baby… that's right. Sarah frowned at the reminder that she would have to rip Toby away from his father. While it was true that Jareth had stolen him, although not according to him, he did have a certain right to see him being his father and all. Plus, he was so great to Toby. She hated to admit it even to herself, but if forced to she would have agreed that Jareth was better with Toby than even her own father was, giving him ample attention and love. Her father had given him those things too, of course, being a good father by her world's standards, but it seemed Jareth connected with the babe on an entirely different level. Every time he held Toby he got this look in his eyes on and on his face that made it almost impossible for her to think of him as the same man who had taken her against her will, who had hit her unfathomably hard, and tricked her into being his wife. When he held Toby, he was a different man.

"Don't ya worry though, Missy," the worm comforted her, "We'll be going soon enough."

Sarah nodded her head, letting the worm think her only worry was that she would have to wait to leave this place. "Ok, tell me what I do with this," she said, twirling the leaf between her fingers.

X

"Ok, tell me what I do with this."

She pressed her ear harder against the inside of the garden door, having not a clue who it was Sarah was talking to, but knowing that it was something about a sleeping potion. She had come down here and heard voices on the other side of the door, and rather than opening it she had crept in close against it. She listened as a plan to put everyone to sleep was explained on the other side of the door, her eyes growing wide when she learned that the queen was, in fact, planning an escape!

X

The song Jareth sings is David Bowie's _Baby Can Dance_ … which I'm sure was everyone's main question for this chapter; it's really a very catchy song and if you're bored I would recommend giving it a listen.


	23. Chapter 23

Beta for this chapter is The Art of Suicide

X

Karen felt like singing! Dancing even!

She filled her coffee mug up to the brim to make sure to get the last of it from the pot, taking it in both hands to warm them and bringing it up to breathe in the aroma deeply. Although it was meant to wake her up, the smell of coffee always managed to utterly relax her. She never had coffee till after she had made it back to Aboveground and acquired a love for it right away.

Today was a beautiful day. The sky was a grayish white covered by clouds and the air was brisk going on chill. The grass and leaves were already either dead and gone or hanging on in vain by their last thread. None of that mattered though because tonight her child would be coming home. She couldn't wait to hold him again. She had no doubt that Jareth would try to find a way to come after her again, which was why she had already gone to the airport last night instead of meeting with the Underground Women. She had made the necessary arrangements to take herself and her son to Brazil tomorrow morning bright and early.

Sarah wished Toby away to his father once already, and now that she knew even more about the underground Karen couldn't risk her stepdaughter putting her son or herself in any more danger. She would go find a big cheap mirror at Goodwill or something today and pick up the kids tonight as was arranged by the underground women, deal with the changelings they were going to send through with them, and take the two kids to a hotel for the night. She had already booked a room at the local Americ-Inn. In the morning, she would take Toby and leave the country and Sarah would go back to her father.

No doubt the police would suspect Sarah of something heinous, but she was still a minor and her father loved her too much for Karen to see him ever dream of pressing charges. If Sarah told the police the truth about what had happened with Jareth and the Underground she would be taken for a nut and, although she was a dreamer she wasn't stupid so Karen doubted she would be foolish enough to mention anything like that to police. She had a vivid imagination though, she would come up with something to say to the cops surely. And in the meantime, Karen and her son would be safe and sound hidden away in South America.

Karen smirked into her coffee mug.

She was surprised when Roger came down from the bed, stumbling into the kitchen in his sleeping pants, tee-shirt, and robe. Anymore he always slept in late, staying in bed whether he was asleep or not till at least noon. His eyes were bloodshot and his beard was starting to grow out, making him look an utter mess with his bed-head. Despite the bloodshot, these last few days every time he looked at her she could see nothing in his eyes but distrust and a certain degree of resentment. The sooner she left the better.

He didn't even glance at her though he knew she was there as he went over to the coffee pot, saw that it was empty and with a sigh of frustration walked over to the fridge to get himself a glass of milk.

Karen mentally went over everything she would have to get done before tonight once more. Roger kept a handgun in a safe under the sink in their private bathroom. The bullets for it were in the sock drawer. She would need to get a hold of those.

"I'm meeting with Sarah's counselor again tonight, just so you don't get worried," she mentioned, only to notice Roger stalled in the middle of pouring his milk like as though he had just been hit in the back of the head. She thought he might say something, but ultimately, he simply put the milk away even though his glass was only half full.

"Ok," was all he muttered before closing the fridge. He let out a long and tired sigh before turning around to finally face her, his eyes staying on the table rather than her.

"How are you feeling?" Karen made herself ask, although she could already guess.

There was another long pause where Roger continued to stare at the table. "Fine," he muttered before exiting the kitchen again, heading back up the stairs.

She couldn't stay much longer.

X

Sarah felt very tired today, she had had very little sleep and what she had been able to manage had been fitful. Although she was already nervous and anxious about the prospect of today being her last day in the Underground, what had really kept her up was her unease about the situation and if she would even be able to pull it off. If everyone would have been acting normal that would have been one thing, but Jareth still wasn't speaking to her, or even placing himself in her presence. She hadn't seen him since the night before when she had refused him, and if it weren't for the fact she had heard him go into his own room last night she would have had no clue if he was even still in the castle.

Sarah turned in her bed and looked over at the door that separated their rooms. She hadn't tried to open it at all, especially since she suspected he was still upset with her.

Mavid hadn't been in the castle last night either as far as she had known. She only hoped that didn't create a backlash effect where they would both keep a close eye on her tonight. Sarah opened the little drawer on the nightstand set up next to her bed and ran her fingers over the bit of folded up fabric she had torn from her dress last night that carried the little leaf the worm had given her. He had warned her to be careful not to touch the leaf petal at all or she would fall fast asleep.

The doorknob turned then and she quickly shoved the drawer closed as the adjoining door opened. She sat up in bed, startled, to see Jareth was already up and dressed for the day in sinisterly tight tan leggings, knee-high black boots, a black fitted top, and a jacket that was made of some sort of animal fur that was unfamiliar to her. It was also a tannish-orange in color and was speckled with dark brown tear-drop spots upon the long strands of fur. As always, he wore black gloves and the jacket was left open so she could still see the pendant that hung from around his neck.

His eyes met hers and as far as she could see he wasn't angry anymore, there was no anger in his stance or expression. She couldn't see any emotion in his eyes at all. It made her hesitant about what she should say to him, so she waited for him to make the first move.

Jareth held no hesitations himself as he made his way into her room and came over to sit on the side of her bed. "Good morning, precious," he greeted softly.

Sarah looked out the window at the sun that had just started to rise. "Am… did I sleep late?" she asked, taking in the fact that he was already dressed.

"No, I couldn't sleep so I arose early. How did you sleep?"

She could see no point in lying. "Terribly."

Jareth's brow rose at that. "Why is that?"

Now she could see the point in lying, "Probably just anxious about the meeting coming up."

Jareth nodded his head in thoughtful agreement.

"What about you?" Sarah asked, mainly to just be polite. "Why couldn't you sleep?"

Jareth met her eyes then. "I was missing you."

What he said might have been cheesy, but his expression was serious, and he only looked more serious since he was tired. Jareth reached out and tucked a loose strand of her hair back behind her ear, running his thumb over the line of her jaw as he brought his hand back down to cover one of her own. Sarah let him go ahead and hold her hand, even giving his gloved hand a squeeze in return. "I wanted to apologize for my impatience the other night," he finally spoke. "I know I wasn't the most understanding, nor accepting of your preference to wait for intercourse until after your cycle is over and done with. This last week, with the lessons and all the added stress, you have been good to me… and I was a little less than that with you. I apologize."

Sarah was so shocked by his words that she could do little more than sit there and gape at him. "Um, er… apology accepted."

Jareth brought the hand that wasn't holding hers up to stroke his leather gloved fingers over her cheek gently before leaning in and placing the briefest kiss against the corner of her lips. He hesitated before pulling back from her, like he meant to kiss her again, but for some reason that didn't seem like his motivation to Sarah. There was a tension in the air for the briefest second that felt almost… hostile.

"I'm going to be very busy today so it is likely you won't see me till supper," Jareth informed her.

Sarah nodded her head in understanding, thinking that that was okay with her then. It would give her the opportunity she needed to do what she had to if she was to escape tonight.

"Clora and Ishapell will be here shortly to help you get ready for the day and take you to your lessons."

"Okay," Sarah sighed.

There was a moment that Jareth simply continued to sit beside her, his eyes intense as he looked at her, but she didn't see the heat in them she had grown accustomed to. He looked like she was judging her in a different way this time. Finally, he got up from her side and exited her room out into the hall.

Sarah took into consideration the odd way he was acting, which technically had started long before last night, and tried hard to suppress the sinking feeling in her stomach that maybe it was possible he knew something. Granted he wasn't acting much differently from how he normally was and had acted much stranger to her in the past. There was a possibility that now that she knew she had something to hide she just automatically assumed he had already found her out on it, but then again there was a slim chance that maybe he had. What if the worm had been sent by him as some elaborate test? Or maybe the worm was a pawn and the Underground women worked for Jareth. What if Mavid had been out in the garden already last night and had heard everything?

"Stop that, just shut up," she hissed to her herself under her breath. This was why she had tried to restrain herself from thinking he was acting out of the ordinary in the first place. "Just calm down, stupid. If you hadn't met with the worm last night and had no plan for escape, do you think Jareth would have come to you done what just he did?" she was silent while she thought on it, finally letting out a held breath and calming down. "Yes, definitely." It did seem like something he would do to gain her favor so that when her period did end she would tell him or something. "Ok then see, now stop talking to yourself before you think you're crazy."

Sarah couldn't help but smile a little at her own joke and climbed out of bed just as Clora and Ishapell knocked on her door.

"Come on in," she called.

The door opened and the two females entered, shutting the door behind them. Clora was first into the room and Sarah took notice of a sly little smile on the females face. Her eyes twinkled like a happy child's and Sarah remembered seeing it before when Clora knew she was about to be vastly entertained by something. Since she liked seeing the humiliation of those around her best, Sarah knew to take that look as a sign of no good.

"What are you so pleased about?" Sarah asked her, her guard already up.

Clora smiled in a cat-who-ate-the-canary fashion. "Nothing yet, but today should be… interesting."

Sarah was about to go off on the female when Ishapell stepped up between them, "Ignore her, Sarah. No doubt she is just looking forward to seeing your lessons today. We ran into Miss Rally on the way here and she mentioned something about dancing lessons."

Sarah couldn't help but let out a huge groan and sat back down on the bed.

Clora's smile widened and Ishapell ducted over to the trunk that housed all of Sarah's lingerie. To get her ready for the day… clothes-wise anyway.

X

"Concentrate!" Rally hissed out, "You almost stepped out again. Is it really so hard for you to count to three?"

Sarah bit her cheek to keep from cursing back, but it was easier to take Rally's horridness today since Sarah knew it would be the last time she would ever have to put up with it. It had indeed been dance lessons today, but as it had turned out, luck had in a way been on Sarah's side. The kitchens were only a few doors down from the room they were using today for their lessons and she only needed to wait for the right opportunity to make it there. It was just a matter of biding her time.

She had been able to convince Ishapell to help her dress in a front-hooked corset this morning and when she had gotten the chance she had slipped the fabric-wrapped leaf out of her drawer and into the sash that tied around the waist of her dress. She kept mentally checking to make sure she didn't subconsciously touch it or anything like that less anyone suspect or lord forbid that it should slip out of place.

Clora and Ishapell stood against the wall, watching her progress- or rather her lack-there-of without comment. Although there was the occasional snicker from Clora when she stepped out of line, Rally then kicking at her feet till she got back onto the markings already laid out on the cleared floor of the room. It wasn't that it was a very hard dance she was learning, but she couldn't concentrate on it at all. Her mind was far too busy with the anticipation and anxiety of tonight and the added distraction of looking for her chance to leave the room for a moment unsupervised. If she just made to go to the bathroom then surely at least either Clora or Ishapell would follow her.

Even though Sarah considered most of her lessons to be pointless in any case, this one she really couldn't see the importance in. She wasn't a naturally great dancer, this she was aware of. But the dance Rally was trying to make her learn had her ghosting around the floor with an invisible partner. She had only really danced with two people in her life, having sat out of most of her school's formals and dances, and the first was her father when she had been small enough to stand on his feet as he danced with her in the kitchen as her mother laughed and clapped for them both, and then with Jareth in the bubble dream he had trapped her in. Despite any feelings she had about him or the trick he had played on her in doing so, she could in no way convince herself that he had been anything less than a very skilled and graceful dancer. Under his lead, she had moved with him in a way she was completely unfamiliar with to a song she had never heard before, but it hadn't mattered one bit because with him guiding her anyone watching would have thought that she had danced in such a way her whole life. She could see no reason, therefore, to have to learn dancing on her own.

Rally saw it differently though and Sarah just narrowly made it back into the markers when the little girl came after her with the intent of more painful kicks to her feet and ankles.

"I must say, your majesty, that your dancing could make an entire room breathless… from laughing too hard," Rally quipped, smacking Sarah's lower back as she moved by on the markings to signal that she needed to straighten her spine.

Sarah bit down on her lip and tried to straighten up as she continued over the markings.

"Stop pulling your lips tight! Who makes such a face when she is dancing in the arms of a man? You will make anyone dancing with you think that you are afraid of catching a disease from them or something. No one wants to dance with someone so prissy!"

Sarah tried to stop the frown from sinking deeper into her face, trying to turn her mind instead to happier thoughts while repeating to herself, _just till tonight, just till tonight, just till tonight_.

"What do you think would happen if you made that face while dancing with the king?"

Sarah rolled her eyes at that as if Jareth had never seen her scowling at him before. If he were here she would scowl at him now for making her go through these ridiculous lessons in the first place.

"Jareth is my husband, he may be sympathetic," she shrugged while twisting around like the markers in front of her indicated.

"I wasn't referring to Jareth, but of his father," Rally snapped. "It will be customary for you to dance with King Hamold at least once during your debut ball should you impress the council."

Sarah was so thrown by the thought of having to dance with that loathsome man, who to her was worse than both Jareth and Rally put together, that she floundered on her steps and strayed away from the markings long enough that Rally could deliver a sharp enough kick to the side of her calf that she let out a scream from the pain that shot up her leg but didn't allow it to make her hesitate at all as she scrambled back into place.

"Really, if you had been dancing with a man his toes would have been crushed by now from the sheer number of times you had stepped on them… or possibly by your weight."

Rally didn't even notice when Sarah stopped following the markers long enough to turn and glare down at her, for just at that moment the door to the room cracked open and one of the kitchen brownies that always served the food poked his dark little head in. "Begging your pardons, Misses, but lunch is ready to be served. Shall I take it to the dining room or will you be eating here today?"

Rally let out a frustrated sigh but summoned the brownie forth with a wave of her hand. "In here then, please. Better that we keep practicing through lunch I think since so much time has already been wasted."

The brownie nodded and pushed the door open with his little cart carrying everyone's lunch trays. Sarah couldn't help but feel infinitely thankful for the break as she stepped off the markers, only to freeze when Rally turned around and gave her a cold look that should never have been seen on a child's face. "What do you think you're doing?"

Sarah stopped in her tracks and Ishapell, Clora, and even the brownie stopped what they were doing as well to watch. Sarah was sure that her face was a portrait of frustrated confusion.

"You haven't even completed the basic steps of the dance yet, so you have not earned a lunch." she turned to the brownie then. "You may take back her lunch till she has earned it."

"You can't do that!" Sarah huffed, watching with growing concern that she may be wrong as the brownie handed Rally and the other two their trays before placing hers back in the cart to leave.

"Oh no?" Rally asked, her tone sounding bored as if she were discussing the weather. "Your husband, the King of the Goblins, gave me very clear permission that while you are under my teachings that I may bend you to my methods however I choose to provide it do nothing adverse to your health or safety. Denying you a meal will hardly hurt you in any way. If anything, it will probably do you a world of good."

Sarah and Rally both knew that there was absolutely nothing wrong with her weight whatsoever, but nonetheless, it still steamed Sarah for Rally to make such comments.

The brownie took her tray of food from the room and she could only watch as it happened, sluggishly stepping back over to the marks. As the others took the trays from their plates she should have felt very upset and would have too if it hadn't been that that gave her an idea. There was an opportunity that came with this setup, and she was going to take advantage of it.

"Since I haven't earned a meal yet, can I at least have a quick bathroom break? I've been at this for a couple hours now," Sarah whined in a voice she knew to be obnoxious. With food now hot and in their laps, if she slipped off for something as trivial as a bathroom break she couldn't see any of them delaying their meal to follow her so she could do so. It gave her the perfect chance to rush down the hall to the kitchens; where no doubt- since lunch had now been served- tonight's supper was already underway. Even if they thought her to be taking too long and came and found her in the kitchen, something that would have been the worst-case scenario if not for what had just happened, it would be okay because she could play it off as just being hungry for being denied food.

Rally let out a sigh like she was about to deny Sarah but instead nodded her head. "Fine, you may go but you must hurry there and back. We are still behind in your lessons and the meeting with the council is in just two days."

Sarah nodded her head in understanding and quickly ducked out of the room without another word.

She remembered the kitchens from the tour that Jareth had taken her on of the castle shortly after arriving, and although she had been stressed and tired and her feet had been screaming in protest as they tried to grow accustomed to the evil shoes she had to wear. She remembered at least what the kitchen door looked like and had no trouble recognizing it again when she came upon it. The door itself was very heavy and solid to better keep the goblins out, and she knew that there was a pinch of basil nudged into the corner of the door frame because Jareth had explained to her at the time that goblins deeply hate basil and won't go near the stuff. Such was the same of every doorway corner in every room he didn't want to goblins to get into, such as the kitchens and their bedrooms.

What really stood out to her about this door, however, was the knocker in the shape of an old goblin's head that so much reminded her of the knockers she encountered in the labyrinth the time she had run it. This one's ring ran through his nose, which was what she suspected caused him to snore rather noisily at his post.

"Um, excuse me?" she whispered, trying not to make much noise in the hall though she was pressed for time. The brass goblin head didn't stir from his slumber. She tried again. "Excuse me!" she hissed, reaching out to wiggle the knocker from side to side just a bit.

The knocker couldn't ignore that and woke with a snort, his tired and droopy brass eyes rolling around before falling on her. The annoyance was clear on his face at having been woken up. "Wha- oh, it's you," he grumbled, "I thought maybe it was one of those pesky goblins."

Sarah was about to ask him what he meant by that since they had only met once and even then, he opened for Jareth rather than her. Apparently, he remembered who she was though because the door swung open without her even needing to knock. He was already halfway back asleep as she stepped into the kitchen and the door slid shut behind her.

The kitchen was kept in immaculate condition compared to the rest of the castle, seeming cleaner than even Jareth's bedroom. She supposed this was largely because the goblins were never allowed in here. Jareth was sensible enough to never allow them anywhere near any food he himself intended to eat. Sarah had seen them shoving some things into their mouths that were more than questionable before. The only thing the goblins did indeed know a great deal about when it came to edible substances was hard liquor.

The room was of impressive enough size, with two large windows covered in black iron encrusted with diamond shaped holes to allow air flow taking up the bulk of two walls while most the kitchen appliances had been shoved against the others. Despite the huge windows that were letting in the chilled current from outside, it was still very warm in the room thanks to a massive oven that took up the entirety of one wall and the three fire pits that were carved into another. There was a door on the far side of the room that's purpose remained a mystery, but she couldn't waste her chance now that the kitchen seemed to be empty.

She looked over at the three fire pits in the wall where a large black pot was hanging over one of them and went over to it, knowing from the rich smell wafting from it that no doubt whatever was cooking was to be part of supper tonight. She took a thick cooking rag down from where it hung next to the pits on the wall and reached in just enough to grab the swinging bar that the pot was suspended on, pulling it back out from inside the pit. Now that the fire was no problem, she used the rag to protect her hand from the heat of the pot as she slid the lid to the side and glanced in. Both steam and the smell of the divine soup wafted up to her face, and she was pleased that it would work well for what the worm had instructed her to do the other night to make her escape possible.

The leaf carried on it a poison that was so strong that all she had to do was touch it to someone's skin and the direct contact would be more than enough to put them to sleep almost instantly. But she couldn't very well just walk up to Jareth and Mavid and expect either of them to allow her to just press a leaf against them, and then for the other to just stand there and wait his turn. No chance, and then as soon as they woke up they would know what had happened and she was told she would need all the time she could get. People who were forced into a sleep often woke a lot earlier than they normally would. And besides, it would be much easier to take everyone out at the same time rather than run around the castle trying to find everyone to do the same thing to or to just leave and risk Jareth being woken up by Rally or something.

The worm had told her the best way would be to get the leaf into something that everyone would have to ingest. Since there wasn't a way for her to do this when the food was being served, her only choice was to do so while it was being prepared. In cooking it the worm had warned her that it would take the poison a little longer to kick in, but that it shouldn't become any less powerful once it did kick in and she would have a couple solid hours if not the entire night before anyone awoke and managed to find her gone.

Sarah reached into her sash and pulled out the cloth that housed the little leaf, quickly looking around to make sure no one could see her slipping anything into the soup before shaking the cloth out over it and watching as the leaf fell into the pot. To her horror, however, the leaf didn't fall into the soup but rather sat right on the top. The deep purple color was a stark contrast to the rusty orange coloring of the soup.

"What are you doing in my kitchen!" a voice behind her cried out.

Sarah jumped about out of her skin at the shrill noise and, before she even looked up to see who had caught her, she brought her hand forward and used the very tip of her finger to quickly push the leaf down under the surface of the soup. The liquid burned her finger and knuckles instantly and she couldn't hold back a scream of pain as she pulled her hand back. Her hand ached and pain continued to pulse through her arm as though it was carried through her veins with every beat of her very heart. She swayed on the spot as a dizzy spell overtook her, but it wasn't that she was dizzy, but rather had suddenly felt a wave of exhaustion sweep over her. She could guess that it had nothing to do with the burn, but rather the brief micro-second that she had touched the leaf to push it down. The exhaustion was already ebbing slowly so she tried to refocus on the pain in her hand to help her keep from yawning.

"My goodness! What were you thinking?!" the same shrill voice screamed at her.

Sarah looked over to see that the two kitchen brownies had come in from the door across the room, one being the brownie that had brought the cart out to serve them, and the other was the chef that Sarah had only met briefly the one-time Jareth had brought her through here. The chef was the one screaming at her as his assistant hurried over to fetch a bucket in the corner that was full of half melted ice. He gripped the wrist of her injured hand and Sarah allowed him to shove it into the cold water to stop the burning.

The brownies both looked about the same, both small and thin in stature, coming to about the bottom of her ribcage in height. They both were covered with a very short kind of brown fuzz just about all over their bodies and they both had wild-looking black hair and large yellow eyes. They both wore dark brown slacks with simple green tunics, but no shoes covered their dark feet and the chef wore an apron that looked to be smeared with what was either blood or tomato paste. Judging by a duck feather that stuck in his hair she was betting it was blood. He also had a green jewel hanging from his lower lip. His assistant had pairings as well, except for more of them with three green gems hanging from one ear and two more located around his nose.

The assisting brownie released her wrist after a moment and she pulled her now numb hand out of the ice water.

"What were you doing?" the chef demanded.

With them both looking up at her so accusingly, she had to smooth this out so that they neither replaced the soup they had seen her touch nor reported this to Jareth. Sarah tried her level best to put on an expression that conveyed innocence and embarrassment. "I'm- I'm so sorry, but you see I've just been working so hard at my lessons today and I was famished," she turned her gaze to the assistant. "You saw how Rally denied me lunch. Well, I only came in here hoping to grab a bite on the sly. The soup smelled absolutely delicious so I had pulled it out to look and maybe get a taste, but my hand slipped in when you startled me."

The two exchanged looks and she couldn't blame them, it did sound a little odd that being startled would make her hand slip into a pot of hot soup, but on such short notice, there were less believable things she could have said.

"Well… I suppose no harm is done," the chef finally muttered.

"Again, I'm so sorry, I look forward to the soup tonight, I suppose I'll just wait till later and not cause you any more trouble."

The two exchanged looks once more as Sarah backed out of the room quickly. She had done her part, now she could only wait and hope that they did indeed serve the soup tonight. She was sure they wouldn't throw it out or anything, but if they did… Sarah made herself stop right there on that thought as she returned down the hall to her lessons before Rally or the others could come looking for her.

X

Sarah couldn't help but feel nervous as she sat at the table. The lessons had passed unbearably slowly today, but now that she was waiting for supper to begin…

Not everyone was here yet though, which worried her. Normally Jareth and Mavid were both here and waiting by the time she got to the table. Today they were the only two still to show. Clora, Ishapell, and Rally were all at their seats, with Tallia and Torik sitting off to the side against the wall. Under normal circumstances, Mavid was the only one of serving class to be allowed to sit at the table, and in fact, he always sat to Jareth's right except for that time that Jareth's father had joined them.

Sarah held Toby in her lap since either she or Jareth always held him during the supper-time meal and currently Jareth wasn't here. Which was fine, because right now she wanted to be the one to hold him anyway. She leaned her head down to the top of his head, his long blonde curls tickling her nose as she breathed in and out. He still had a sweet baby smell lingering about him that just smelled so good and caused her to only hold him closer to her.

The doors opened then and Sarah looked up, trying not to show too much anxiety in her expression as Jareth and Mavid made their way into the dining hall, giving no excuses whatsoever for being late as they made their way to their seats. Aside from looking possibly just a little bit tired, there was no indication that Sarah could see that explained them being late. Jareth took his seat next to her and as soon as he did the doors to the dining hall opened once again, this time from the brownie pushing his serving cart in. as the brownie made his way around the table Sarah tried to calm the nerves inside that were going crazy now that Jareth was sitting right next to her. With him so close she couldn't help but feel truly anxious about the success of tonight.

What if he didn't eat the soup? What if it wasn't even to be served?

What if he knew?!

"Sarah," Jareth greeted, turning his attention to her.

Normally she would have jumped when he said her name, but this time she had been so beyond startled by it that she hadn't even done that, just froze like a deer in the headlights of an oncoming MAC truck. Even her heart didn't beat for an instant. She forced herself to calm down at least a little and tried not to look anything but indifferent as she turned to him.

He didn't look upset or anything, he only looked tired and his eyes were slightly redder around the edges. There was no anger in them though. If anything, they didn't look quite one-hundred percent focused. "Er, yes?"

Jareth raised a brow at that, but not nearly as high as he usually did. It was then that Sarah remembered that he hadn't asked her a question or anything, but had simply greeted her, so her response hadn't really been the appropriate one. She inwardly scolded herself to get it together. "It's good to see you," she tried again, keeping her voice at a low level like he had since this was just between them while the others at the table had their own conversations.

Her breath caught in her throat and she didn't even hear his response as the brownie came around and placed a silver covered tray in front of Jareth, and then another in front of her. If it was the soup, this would be it. She thought she just might be sick from the nervousness of wondering if it was or not. Her entire escape relied on the soup being under that lid. She couldn't look though because she wasn't allowed to lift her lid until Jareth lifted his first. She looked over at his plate, which he had yet to so much as glance at because his attention was still on her. Whatever he had said to her didn't seem to require a response because he had already moved on in the conversation. "How was your day? I trust your lessons weren't too hard on you."

Did he even know he had food in front of him?! "Oh, it was fine enough… left me really hungry actually," she tried to hint, "What about yours?" she tacked on just to be polite and make her hint seem a little less obvious. The brownie set Mavid's tray down in front of him and it was only then that Sarah looked at him, only to go completely still when she saw that it wasn't the assistant like normal, but tonight it was the chef himself who was serving them. She could tell from his piercing. Was that a bad sign maybe?

Jareth noticed her looking at the chef with something of a surprised expression and gave her a little smirk. "Tonight, Beezon has made his signature dish for us. He always serves it himself, don't you, Beezon," Jareth smiled pleasantly at the chef, who simply nodded his head before filling the last wine glass.

"Enjoy," the chef said before exiting the room to leave everyone to the meal.

Sarah's focus snapped back to Jareth, who had reached out for his lid to remove it from the first course. Sarah sat in silence when Jareth pulled back the shining silver lid, only to reveal, not a soup cup as she had expected, but a plate of freshly made salad instead. Sarah must have stared at the salad for what seemed like a very long time, her mind refusing to process what was sitting there as though she had never seen salad before. It was like her mind was trying to find a way of convincing her that she was seeing wrong, or possibly that perhaps it was somehow the soup in disguise. Sarah reached out to her own tray and pulled off the lid, seeing that she too had a salad. Looking around the table it looked like everyone had much the same thing. Where was the soup?! The brownies wouldn't have thrown it out… would they?

She sat staring down at her soup as slowly she felt her stomach sink lower and lower and her heart followed it. Toby squirmed on her lap, bringing her back to the here and now and reminding her that she couldn't act like anything was wrong… even if everything was. She shifted him around on her lap and reached out for her salad fork with a shaky hand, stabbing at the lettuce and bringing it up to chew on without any dressing or extras. It would have all tasted like cardboard to her right now anyway and she tried hard to hold back her tears. Jareth turned to Mavid and they started talking quietly to each other about something trivial she didn't even care about so she was thankful the conversation would keep his attention off her till she could better collect herself, but already breathing was very difficult through the lump in her throat.

It wasn't until they had all finished off their salad and appetizers that Jareth turned his attention back to her. "So, what did you learn from your lessons today?" he asked, making polite conversation as his eyes started to show some of their familiar intensity around the edges as he looked her over, his eyes lingering over the features of her face.

"Well, I was taught dancing," Jareth said nothing as he continued to look her over, waiting for her to elaborate. "I wasn't very good at it though so it took most of the day," she admitted sheepishly.

"I remember you being quite the beautiful dancer," he remarked.

She looked up to meet his eyes then and she wasn't sure if it had been the hushed way he had said it like it was a secret between just them, or the way his eyes darkened with lust when he said it that forced a blush to coat her cheeks. Even a fool would have known just what memory was going through his head right now and she too couldn't stop the memory of the way he held her in that bubble to come back to her. The slight smirk on his face when he saw that she indeed remembered it as well only caused her blush to intensify as she realized he was being playful towards her.

Toby bounced a little on her lap, allowing her to break eye contact with Jareth as she smiled down at the babe in her arms. Jareth smiled too and reached out to take his son from her, and although she hesitated, she did hand him over. Jareth kissed the top of Toby's head and situated him on his leg before reaching out to remove the lid from the tray and reveal the main course.

Sarah's heart had been heavy just seconds before, but now it fluttered like a hummingbird's wing in her chest again as she looked at the main course. She had been mistaken, what she had thought was soup earlier hadn't been such at all, but instead was sauce! In the middle of Jareth's tray sat a plate that held a number of what looked like balls of some sort of meat that were covered and soaked in the sauce in what kind of reminded her of the meatballs her school used to make back home, except that these looked about twenty times better and were garnished with bright green leaves in the center. She took off the lid of her own tray and was delighted to see the same. They hadn't thrown it out after all.

Jareth picked up his fork and Sarah held her breath as she watched out of the corner of her eye as he stabbed it into one of the meatballs and coated it with a little extra of the sauce on the plate. He then brought it up to his mouth and she could practically feel her heart skip a beat as he bit into it, groaning a little in delight when he did. "Delicious," he remarked before taking another bite. Everyone was digging into the meal and Sarah picked up her fork to mash the meat around a little on her plate so that it would look like she had possibly tried some, or had at least picked at it. She took another drink from her wine glass so it wouldn't be so noticeable that she never brought her silverware to her lips. She tried to hold back her own smirk when she looked across the table and watched as Mavid popped one into his own mouth as well.

Within an hour, they would all be sleeping soundly till dawn.

"What do you think?" Jareth asked her.

She looked down at her meal again, figuring that it did indeed look like she had at least tried a little. "Well, I'm sure it's well liked, but it's just not to my taste I suppose."

"Really? That surprises me."

She had nothing else she could say so simply shrugged.

Toby cooed from Jareth's lap, catching their attention. Jareth smiled down at him. "I bet you would like it, wouldn't you, son?"

Sarah almost choked on her wine when Jareth brought another ball on his fork over towards Toby. "What are you doing?" Sarah hissed, trying to keep most of the alarm out of her voice.

Jareth looked up at her, confusion on his face. "Seeing if he likes it, he's started solid foods recently after all."

"I- I don't think you should do that. I mean, what if the spices in that are too much for a baby? You don't want him to get sick."

Jareth seemed to think it over for a second before shifting the direction of the food to his own mouth. "I suppose better safe then, sorry. Isn't that right, little prince?" Jareth smiled down at Toby, who craned his head back to look back up at his father.

"Bite bite bite!" Toby insisted, earning him another laugh from Jareth and even Sarah couldn't help but smile as she sipped her wine again, happy that it was already helping her to calm down; she just had to be sure that she stayed calm rather than tipsy. It wouldn't do for her to go around drunk if she planned to make it out of here. Jareth shifted Toby again in his lap as Tallia got up from her spot on the floor and brought over a little cracker for Toby to eat, handing it to Jareth so he could feed him.

Sarah watched as everyone finished off much of their meal, both happy and sad to see Jareth being so sweet with Toby. She tried to focus less on them, but Jareth kept her attention coming back to him by either doing something cute with Toby or commenting about something to her. He was being pleasant for this meal, and although it was nice she kind of wished that he would be cold towards her just so that it would be easier for her to leave without looking back tonight.

By the time they were almost done with dessert, Mavid let out a long and deep yawn that was followed right after by both Rally and Tallia. Sarah looked over to Jareth as they all said their "excuse me's" and could see that he looked on the verge of some pretty big yawns as well. He certainly seemed tired at least as he picked at his dessert rather than eating it. His eyes flicked up to catch her staring at him and he offered her a small smile as though she too looked tired. He brought his hand up to cover a yawn as Tallia stepped over to take Toby from him. "Excuse me. Go ahead and put my son to bed, I think I'll also turn in early tonight." he turned to Sarah and held his gloved hand out to her as he rose from his seat. "Join me?"

She watched as Tallia trudged out of the room on tired legs to put Toby to bed before turning back to Jareth and taking his hand, allowing him to help her out of her own chair even as he swayed slightly. "The rest of you may do whatever you wish for the rest of the night," he informed the rest of them, although looking back Sarah could see plainly that everyone in the room looked very tired. She faked a yawn of her own as Jareth led them both up to his bedroom.

She didn't fight him to be let into her own room tonight because it didn't matter where she spent the next hour. She acted like she too was just too exhausted to argue at all. It wasn't till Jareth started to lead her over to the bed that she pulled back against him, causing him to turn around and spare her a half-annoyed glance.

"I need to use the bathroom quickly is all," she told him, relieved when he released her hand even though she never really thought that he wouldn't allow her to do so. He made his own way over to the bed and Sarah watched as he half crawled and half flopped onto it before ducking into the bathroom.

Once she was in there she went ahead and used the facilities, worried at first when she found her cycle to be over. Then, she remembered that it didn't matter anymore. She thought of taking a bath as well but decided there would be time enough for that later. She didn't want to chance the sound of the water filling the tub to attract Jareth. She fiddled around with the gown she had on, just about exhausting herself in the process of removing it. Today the gown was the hard part though since she had been sure earlier to ask Ishapell to lay out one with front clasps rather than back laces. Once she had the dress off, the underskirt and lingerie were a breeze. She kept her hair up in the pile atop her head that Jareth's cousins made that morning because it would be easier to deal with if it just stayed out of the way. Once she was undressed and ready she took a deep breath of prayer and opened the door to the bedroom.

Jareth was in just about the same position as before, except he had rolled over onto his back on the bed and he seemed to be asleep from a distance. Sarah wasn't fool enough to trust that though. She tried to stay quiet just in case she did wake him as she went over to the ridiculously large bed. She could see once she got closer that Jareth was, in fact, asleep, his eyes closed and he was breathing deep and evenly. He was sprawled out on the bed, his billowy shirt open enough to expose a large triangle of alabaster-like skin on his chest, one dusky pink bud showing against the edge of the fabric. His medallion had dropped back somewhere behind his body, the gold chain leaving only a line against the front of his neck. The way his legs were opened, one hanging off the edge of the bed, caused the bulge between his thighs to seem even more present than normal. It was odd that something that was normally so dangerous could look so enchanting while asleep.

"J-Jareth?" Sarah whispered, afraid that he wasn't asleep but need to know either way. He didn't stir at all. "Jareth?" she tried again, speaking in a normal voice. He didn't stir then either. She wasn't sure just how powerful that poison was supposed to be once it took effect, but she didn't want to push her luck and so thought better of reaching out to touch him. She waited for another moment or two for any sign that he was about to awaken. Once she was satisfied that he wouldn't she went to the wardrobe he kept.

She opened the doors and was happy to see that the first outfit presented to her would work well enough. She couldn't run away very easily in her own wardrobe, what with the corsets and dresses… and the heels! She took out the black tight like leggings from the wardrobe, just barely able to squeeze the stupid things over her hips. It took quite a bit of struggling and if she had been any heavier it would have never worked since Jareth not only was so very thin but insisted that his leggings be worn so tightly. She got them on though and once she was satisfied that she could move around well enough in them, even though when she caught sight of herself in the mirror on the door she could see that they left nothing of her ass to the imagination. Oh well, she wasn't going for best dressed or anything here. The light-yellow tank top that went with them was also tight fitting and pushed down on her breasts uncomfortably but again she couldn't complain since the lack of sleeves still allowed her ample movement. The boots were big on her feet, but since they went all the way up to her knees she didn't have to worry about them falling off. Lastly, there was a black jacket that shined like leather, but to the touch, it was something much stronger than that, like whatever Jareth's armor had been made of. She didn't stop to admire herself or anything in the mirror and instead cast one more anxious look to Jareth. He was still just as he had been on the bed, fast asleep.

She backed out of the room slowly, thankful that he hadn't bothered to lock the door to the hall. He still hadn't moved a muscle when she closed the door behind her. She hurried across the hall to the nursery, opening the door slowly less Tallia was still there. The only one in the room though was Toby, already laying in his crib halfway asleep. She knew she needed to be quick, but she just felt so guilty as she crept into the nursery and over to the babe's crib. Her heart pounded hard to where it was just about all she could hear in her head as she made her way through the darkened room, the only light coming from a little sphere next to the crib that glowed like a night light for Toby. It was enough so that she could make her way to him safely and she reached into the crib, scooping him up into her arms.

Toby fussed as she did so, but she was easily able to sooth him by whispering to him sweet nothings. "Toby…" she wanted to say more, but a tight ball suddenly formed in her throat, making it hard for her to breathe much less talk. Tears pooled in her eyes again and this time although she fought them, she didn't have to worry about it nearly as much so a few slipped out and rolled down her cheeks. She had decided long ago that, although it might not necessarily be the right thing for her to do, it would be the wrong thing for her to try to steal Toby away from Jareth. Maybe Toby did belong here, and maybe not. That wasn't her decision to make, however, and so she just couldn't bring herself to bring Toby with her. That was the main reason she was leaving the babe behind while she made a run for it, but there were plenty of other reasons too as to why it was a good idea to leave him behind. For one, Jareth would be a good father to him, that much she was sure of because he already treated Toby like he was the sunshine itself. For another, the chances of Jareth trying to come after her in the aboveground like he had Karen were far lesser if she didn't steal Toby away from him. He had already told her before that he had only bothered with Karen because he found out that she was carrying his son with her.

Sarah held Toby tightly against herself, her tears rolling onto his little curls. She tried to brush them off, but they just kept falling. In the end, all she could do was lower him back into the crib. She held onto his little fist a couple minutes longer, trying to calm herself, but she was afraid she just might change her mind and so she at long last pulled her hand away, listen to Toby coo and babble as she made her way out of the room, barely able to see for the tears in her eyes. She closed the door behind her and leaned against it for a moment, collecting herself as best she could and trying to put Toby from her mind completely as she continued on her way.

X


	24. Chapter 24

Beta for this chapter is the ever-lovely The Art of Suicide

X

Karen pulled her car into the empty field of one of the farmlands outside of town. Her car was parked right off the side of the road in front of the field, but she wasn't worried. Anyone who drove by would likely think someone had just broken down there. For good measure, she even popped the hood and left it up as though it overheated. She then hit the little button on her key fob to pop the trunk, circling around to pull out first the little black case, then the full-length cheap mirror she picked up at Wal-Mart. It was quite dark out, but the moon offered her all the light she would require. She left her purse behind in the car and carried the mirror and case with her into the field, quickly disappearing amongst the ready-to-be-harvested corn. She only went about twenty feet or so, just enough to not be seen from the road as she went ahead and set the mirror and case down on the ground, then walked around in a tight circle as she broke the stalks of corn down. She trampled them till she had a circle to work in that was roughly five feet in diameter. She had made a lot of noise in doing so and now paused to listen for any noises.

After a couple hushed seconds of hearing nothing but crickets and frogs, she went ahead and leaned the mirror up against some stalks of corn, then knelt on the ground to open the little black case. She reached in and pulled out the gun carefully, reaching back into the case for the bullets. Very soon now she would contact the Underground Women, and then she would have her children back.

She could practically smell Brazil.

X

Three years had gone by, three years since Marcus Taylor had become an officer of the law, and so far, tonight was probably the closest he had ever come to having a taste of action.

Not a lot happened ever in this little town. When two kids disappeared in the middle of the night, it was big news. So, imagine the way word traveled around the station when it came back that the father of those two thought the mother had a hand in their disappearance! Although the father couldn't be ruled out either, they hadn't been able to pass up the only lead. When Mr. Williams called them up about an hour and a half ago to inform the sergeant that his wife had gone out to the "counselor's" again, the squads all circled around the town, keeping tabs on where the wife's car was going. It'd been officer Taylor that had been assigned to follow her and report back if he saw anything though.

He had been neither happy nor upset that he was assigned the task, it was just another job for him to do, and just as boring as some in the past. Being a cop, he'd been warned in his early years to watch out for the three B's that usually led to the downfall of officer's careers; booze, broads, and boredom. While it was true that being an officer was boring about eighty-nine percent of the time, that number only went up when you worked in a quiet little town. The boredom was really getting to him tonight. Probably because he was hoping that maybe something interesting would happen soon just so he wouldn't be bored anymore. A robbery or something maybe, he would even take a distress call from some old lady falling down the stairs at the moment.

At least then it wouldn't be just a night of following "mother dear" down to the local Wal-Mart.

He expected her to return home afterward, only to be puzzled when she left the shopping district to head out to the other side of town. He hoped she didn't go out of his jurisdiction, or he would have to give up the chase and have the sergeant contact the next county to see if they could spare someone to keep an eye out for her. He trailed about two blocks behind her in town, but out on these country roads, he had had to back off even more. When his car came to a turn off he continued straight, only to almost slam on his breaks when he looked over and saw the woman's very car parked on the side of the road in front of a corn field. His training kicked in though and forced him to drive on down the road a way, pulling his car over down the road.

His radio just happened to sound off at that moment, Sergeant Franklin's voice coming over the little speaker. "Where'd you go, Gopher?"

Gopher was a nickname he had picked up during his first week on the force, but he was never actually told why and had even less clue why it had stuck. He reached out and clicked into his radio, "I followed her just outside of town. She took Weasley Road out and turned off on Deer Cross. The vehicle is now parked off the road but I've lost visual of her. Permission to investigate on foot?" he released the button.

Static came over the radio before the sergeant's voice kicked in. "Negative, Gopher. Just sit tight till Officer Candy can join you. You copy that, Candyman?" More static, then Candy's voice can over the radio to copy. "You copy that, Gopher?"

He brought the radio back up, "Copy, Franklin."

He set his radio back into the holder on the dash and killed the engine as he leaned back in his seat and waited for Candy to arrive. Already bored again.

X

On the way down to the garden doors Sarah was relieved that, although she could hear plenty of them, she never happened upon the path of a single goblin. Luck was on her side tonight. She made it to the garden door and didn't even bother looking back as she pulled it open. Just like in past nights, all the plants in the garden looked magnificent and just the slightest bit foreboding as she stepped out onto the path, closing the door behind her.

"Ello," a familiar voice greeted her.

Sarah turned around and looked up at a branch that was dangling by her head, happy to see the little worm sitting on it waiting for her. "Hello," she smiled, sniffing back the last of her tears as she reached out to the branch and carefully took him in her hand. "I'm ready to go now," she sighed.

"But 'ere is the baby?" the worm asked, swaying his body a little so he could look from side to side.

"I-I couldn't get him," Sarah muttered, hoping that maybe the worm wouldn't make her elaborate or say that he wouldn't show just her the way out. No such luck.

"Ya couldn't get 'em? Do we need ter try this another night?"

Sarah shook her head back and forth glumly. "That's not it, I just… I just couldn't get him is all." There was a long pause before she looked up at the worm sitting in her hand. "Will you still show me the way out… please?" she tacked on pitifully.

After another moment of silence, the worm, at last, nodded his head. "If yer ready ter leave then."

She nodded her head again. "Very, how do I do that?"

"We need ter leave this garden of course. Ye know where yer going?"

"What? No, why would I know that?"

The worm laughed at that. "Well ye need to know where yer going to get there, don ye know that by now?"

She felt confused like there was a joke here that she just wasn't getting. "But, I thought you knew the way out," she sniffed.

"Course I do, that's why I can leave whenever I want," the worm laughed.

She really felt confused. "Then can't you show me the way out?"

"No really, ye see, ye got to know where yer going or ya'll never get there."

Sarah let out a frustrated sigh at that. "I don't understand!"

"Let me see if I can explain," the worm thought for a moment, "Do ye know what's keeping ye in this garden? I'll gives ye a hint, they're all over the Labyrinth."

Sarah let out another sigh and looked around, "I don't know, walls?"

The worm nodded. "Exactly."

"But there are no walls around here!" Sarah tried to reason.

"Oh, yes there is, strong ones too. Do you think you can get through them?"

Sarah looked around again but again saw no visible walls. She wanted to say yes, but inside she really doubted it, "No," she finally admitted.

"There is a wall righ' there miss!" the worm exclaimed, "No walls his majesty can build are stronger than the ones we build in our own minds! His majesty knows this, and so uses simple magic tricks to force ye to build up walls for him."

Sarah wasn't sure she fully understood, but suddenly she felt like she was closer to being on the right track than ever before. "The walls in my mind," she repeated, trying to figure out the meaning to the words.

"If ye can get past the walls of yer own mind, ye can get past any wall that ye come across!"

"So, what do I have to do?" Sarah asked, ready to try anything the worm told her.

"Do ye know where ye want to go?"

Sarah thought about it a minute before nodding her head. "Yes, I want to get out of this garden."

"That's a good start miss. I want ye ter look down the walkway in front of yeas, go on then."

Sarah did as told and looked down the path that was surrounded on either side and even slightly overhead by the plants. "Ok."

"Now, I want ye ter think of where ye want ter go and close yer eyes."

Sarah again obeyed, closing her eyes tight.

"Think o' the plants disappearing from right in front of ye," the worm's voice drifted in as she tried to obey, "The plants were never there ter begin with. Now, think o' the path being gone too, that instead, ye are standing next to the castle, next to the wall, with no garden around ye. Only once you have that thought in your head, and the belief of it in yer heart, I want ye ter walk two steps forward."

Sarah tried hard, thinking about what the worm had told her and picturing it in her mind, only when she had the picture firmly in her mind did she continue. Once she lifted her foot to step forward though, fear and doubt crept on her fast and the picture of her standing next to the wall was replaced with the garden and the fear that she would run into one of the plants.

"Wha' are ye doing!" the worm shouted, causing her eyes to fly open and she stopped when she saw that they were indeed surrounded still by the garden. "Oh, ye almost had it too!" the worm sighed. "Try again, and this time keep the image in yer head. Don let yer own walls cage ye in here."

Sarah regrouped from her disappointment and nodded her head in understanding. She knew what her problem had been last time. This time she couldn't let her doubt and fear get the better of her. It was scary, and she wasn't sure what would happen if she succeeded, but one thing was sure. She couldn't take the risk of failing again.

She closed her eyes again and this time she pictured the garden first, seeing every detail. Then in her mind, she forced that image to become two-dimensional, as though it had actually been painted on a wall in front of her rather than real leaves and grasses that surrounded her. She concentrated hard, keeping her eyes closed tight as she pictured herself in her mind stepping up to that wall, taking a step forward in real life. Then she pictured that on the other side of that wall there was no garden, but rather the scene she had seen before next to the wall of the castle. She pictured that the wall was actually no thicker than paper…

And stepped right through it to the other side.

X

Sarah didn't even have to open her eyes to know that she had succeeded in escaping the garden. In that one step, suddenly she could no longer smell all the plant life, but instead, the sweet musty smell of the Labyrinth at night hit her nostrils and the cool night air breezed across her face. She opened her eyes and instead of her vision being obstructed by plants, she saw only the wall of the castle, not even the door that she had come out of was there though, and the ground beneath her feet barely had any weeds on it, let alone a garden.

"Ye did it miss!" the worm congratulated. "And there is the garden right there in front o' ye."

Sarah looked from the worm in her hand down to the ground. In the pale light of the night, she could just barely make out the gleam of the crystal laying against the side of the castle wall. "That's all?!" she asked, astounded at the trickery Jareth's magic was capable of.

"That's all, but mind ye not be touching it now. Remember there are things still living in that thing just as ye were."

She agreed that the worm was right, although a part of her wanted to kick the damn ball for holding her captive so well. "Let's get out of here," she agreed.

Sarah turned away from the little crystal trap, freezing both in her steps and in her heartbeat when she did. It took her brain a moment to even gather what it was her eyes were seeing, thinking and hoping and praying that it was just another illusion. Her heart not only started to beat again, but it beat as though it was pulling overtime for the few that it missed as the pounding of it filled her ears till all she could hear it seemed was the rapid thumping it was creating.

A form like nothing she had ever seen stood right in front of her, in arms reach even. It was like someone was standing there, looking down at her, except there wasn't. There was only complete blackness there in the outline of what seemed to be a man like a void had occurred where a man had been standing there. The void turned what she could only guess was its head slightly to the side and recognized the outline of hair, cut short in the back and hanging down in a couple long strands in front, that belonged to Mavid. Somehow, she just knew that this… this thing was in fact Mavid!

She let out an ear-splitting scream and peddled backward, the worm hidden in the loose fist of her hand as she tried to create space between her and Jareth's lackey.

She could have sworn there was room behind her between her and the wall of the castle, but just the same she almost immediately backed into something hard and firm. She spun her head to the side, only to feel her stomach plunge deep down when she found herself looking right into the mismatched eyes of the Goblin King.

He brought his hands up and seized her forearms instantly in a vise-grip, ensuring that even if her mind did catch up to the situation enough to convince her to struggle that she wouldn't be able to get away. He looked down at her like he wanted to kill her in his anger and under that gaze she could do little more than stand there and shiver even though deep down somewhere she knew she should be trying to run. The pure hatred that was in his eyes now… she felt like she was paralyzed on the spot.

It wasn't possible. There was just no way-

She had poisoned them both! She had watched them eat the sauce! It wasn't possible.

"Well, if it isn't you," Jareth hissed out, his voice flowing like a snake along her skin and causing her to shiver again from the hostility and warning underlying it. "And where are you going?"

He didn't bother waiting for her answer as one of his hands on her arm shifted and he reached down to grip her wrist. Sarah remembered now the worm that was still hiding in her hand and now struggled against him, but she was no match for his strength as he forced her hand up where he could see it. In front of them both, the void was starting to change, the blackness shifting to allow the faintest glimpses of Mavid within as he came to the surface of the void. His hands were already almost fully restored though and so he reached out to pry Sarah's hand open since Jareth could only hold it. Sarah felt helpless under their combined strength and knew that her only choices were to either allow her hand to be opened or crush the worm herself in trying to keep him from Mavid. She opened her fingers so the worm was in full view. He didn't nearly look as frightened as she felt, which was so much she could neither move nor speak, let alone scream, but seemed only surprised that Mavid and Jareth had indeed somehow found them out.

Jareth sneered down at the worm hatefully from over Sarah's shoulder. Mavid made no move to take the worm from Sarah just yet, but instead, the worm continued to rest in her opened hand.

"Well, what do we have here?" Jareth snarled. "Some insolent little grub that no one has yet tried to make escargot out of? You have stepped far over your bounds for the last time, worm." The hatred and danger that was infused inside of Jareth's tone was enough to make beads of perspiration appear on even Sarah's forehead even though he was only talking over her shoulder and not to her… yet.

Jareth let go of Sarah's wrist and meant to grab hold of the worm from her, but in doing so had made his mistake as Sarah's fist clenched over the worm once more and with one arm free she twisted quick and wildly in Jareth's grasp.

His hold on her other arm didn't let go though and she spun semi away from him, her legs tangling with his and she went halfway to the ground as Mavid made to grab for her free arm too. She knew that once Mavid got a hold of her, and he would, that there would be nothing she could do for the worm. Their combined strength would ensure her helpless again. She had only this one fleeting chance.

She swung her arm out, flinging her wrist for extra distance as the worm went flying from her hold a couple feet away from her and the two struggling males. She watched as the worm landed hard on the ground, regrouping quickly as he rolled back over be right side up just as Mavid went for him.

"Run!" Sarah screamed at the top of her lungs.

The worm inched forward and all she could do was watch as Mavid's boot slammed down right on top of him!

"Nnnnnnoooooo!" Sarah screamed, struggling in Jareth's tight hold. He didn't let up an inch as he stared at the ground where the worm had been. All three of them had their attentions focused solely on Mavid's foot. Sarah felt her heart churn again when Mavid turned his foot sharply in place on the ground as if making sure.

"Did you get him?" Jareth demanded.

Sarah couldn't believe he would even ask, they had all just watched what had happened. Even so, they all stayed deathly quiet as Mavid shifted his weight so he could bring his foot up. Sarah's attention was completely focused on Mavid as he leaned his foot to the side so he himself could look, then as he stepped back completely, leaving behind no trace of a corpse whatsoever. Sarah wasn't sure how he had done it, but somehow the Path Master had gotten away at the last possible second! Sarah could barely contain her relief as an impossibly small and shaky laugh escaped her, "He got away!"

Mavid let out a foul curse and Jareth's nails bit into the skin of her arms till she was forced to cry out. "Maybe he did for now, but you won't manage such a feat," he growled into her ear.

Now, Sarah finally found the courage she needed to struggle, and boy did she! She put her whole weight into it despite the pain that raced through her arms from where Jareth held her, twisting first this way and that. If she had been allowed to keep it up for much longer she knew that Jareth wouldn't have been able to hold her, his grip already starting to slip as his nails dragged across her skin.

Mavid advanced on her though, at this point once more fully there and Sarah let out a shallow scream as she brought her legs, which had already fallen out from under her at that point up to kick at him. She missed though and within seconds Mavid had seized the back of her neck and had pushed her head down to the ground, trapping her shoulders against the ground using his leg from his knee to his ankle and his weight to hold her down as Jareth let go of her arms and repositioned his grips on her.

One of his hands grasped firmly onto both of her wrists, holding her arms in a death grip behind her back, while his free hand dug deep into the roots of her hair and he pulled hard there, causing her to cry out again. Only then did Mavid back off her, and with Jareth controlling both her arms and head, there was nothing she could do to get away. He wasn't gentle with her at all as he dragged her by her hair backward and up so that she was forced slowly and painfully to get herself from the ground to her feet.

Her head felt like it was on fire and being torn apart at the same time from the grip he had on her there, and he ignored every cry of pain she made as he jerked her head this way and that to force her to march forward. Sarah still didn't want to go anywhere he wanted to take her at this moment, but even more than that was the thought at the forefront of her mind that said she didn't want him to keep hurting her so much. She just wanted him to stop yanking her around by her hair. She continued to scream, plead with him really, to let her go. Neither he nor Mavid said a single word as they both escorted her a short distance around the castle and back into it through another door that she could only guess they used to get out here in the first place.

She continued to wail from the pain that only got worse and worse as Jareth led her down the stone walls of the castle. Her screams echoed off the walls but ultimately fell on deaf ears as she was forced along. It could only have been a short trip, but it felt unbearably long as she was taken down hall after hall and a steep flight of stairs. The air changed to being humid and cold and there were no windows anymore to let in the light, only torches on the wall, and even they ended after a few steps so that Mavid had to grab one along with a ring of keys and carry it with them to light the way. Sarah looked out of the corner of her eye at the floor and her breathing hitched when she saw they were walking over a series of wooden trap doors with only a little holes the size of peaches drilled into them here and there. She was in the dungeon!

Jareth tugged back on her hair suddenly next to a similar door, signaling for her to stop. He didn't let go of her hair or arms as he peered in through the holes on the door, Mavid holding up the light so he could see in. "This one will do," Jareth decided.

Sarah didn't have to have a degree to know that they meant to put her in that pit. Mavid stepped up and placed a key from the ring he had grabbed into the lock, turning it till it clicked free. Sarah did not want to go in there no matter what!

She decided that she didn't give a flying rat's ass if Jareth pulled out all her hair and broke her arms, she wasn't going in there! She struggled against Jareth with renewed strength, relieved when once he figured out that she meant it he moved with her slightly rather than allowing her to tear out her own hair or cause harm to herself. That only worked for a couple steps though, because Mavid was right there once more. It turned out not to matter though because to her surprise and relief Jareth instructed Mavid to back off. Her relief, however, was very short-lived as Jareth released her hair and brought the side of his fist down on the back of her neck, stunning her long enough that Sarah could do nothing as he tossed her carelessly into the shallow oubliette, slamming the door closed above her.

Sarah struggled to get her nerves to cooperate with her after the shock that had been dealt them, all the while she could hear Jareth and Mavid above her cell.

"I want that worm feeding the birds by morning, Mavid," Jareth snarled. "You are to get every goblin you see and go search for him."

"He could be anywhere in this Labyrinth," Mavid hissed back.

There was a moment's pause and when Jareth spoke again his tone was so low you could almost miss the malice that laced it. "You are not disobeying me right now, are you?"

There was an even longer silence then before Mavid spoke up, his tone much softer this time. "No. I will go search."

"Find him. I want you to pay a visit to the Underground Women, too. They had a hand in Carrie's escape through the worm, no doubt they have a hand in this one too. I want to know why."

There was a vague sound of agreement from Mavid and then the sound of retreating footsteps stepping over her trapdoor and further on down the hall. Only one set of footsteps retreated though, and the light from the torch stayed behind, indicating that someone had stayed behind. Sarah could guess who.

There was a very long silence in which Jareth only continued to stand on the outside of the dungeon door, and she only continued to sit there in the pit on the other side, listening and waiting. She didn't want to be the one to break the silence, but she didn't want Jareth to just walk away and leave her here either.

When she heard him shift his weight she was about to speak up, only for him to beat her to the chase.

"You just had to run." Surprisingly, his voice was about twenty times softer than when he had spoken to Mavid. If there was anything to indicate he had any kind of heart or soul, Sarah would have thought he sounded hurt. Deeply hurt. Given what had happened in the past with Carrie, maybe he was. It changed none of her feelings though. He could be hurt if he wanted, she was too. Her chance for escape… gone. In the blink of an eye, it was gone. And she didn't even know how. She wanted to know at least that much before she was locked away down here for all eternity.

"How-"

"DO NOT SPEAK TO ME!" Jareth roared with such force that even trapped in her hole she cowered back. She looked up through the holes in the ceiling at long length, able to just make out from them that although Jareth stood right on the edge of her cover, he wasn't looking at her, looking at the wall next to him instead. Although he didn't continue to shout he held no less anger in his voice when he continued. "If you speak to me right now… I don't know what I'll do. I made Mavid take the key back up to the front because likewise I don't know what I would do if I got my hands on you again tonight," he confessed.

Sarah felt a shiver of fear creep along her spine and knew he meant what he said. Now was the worst possible time to test his patience. The fact that he hadn't left yet meant he still had something to say to her though, although no doubt he had a great many things to say to her, so she convinced herself to simply sit there and wait for him to continue speaking.

After a couple heavy minutes, he did so. "Rest assured, the only reason I am not taking all my fury out on you right now is because…" his voice caught for a moment before he continued as though it had never happened. "Because you spared my son when you tried to leave."

There was another long silence. Jareth shifted his weight again and Sarah watched in the light of the torch as dust and dirt fell into her oubliette from one of the holes.

"You'll stay in this dungeon tonight. I'll deal with you in the morning."

With that Jareth marched over her trap door and down the hall, taking the only light source with him and leaving Sarah in nothing but utter darkness. Sarah didn't even move until he was gone. She didn't bother waiting for her eyes to adjust; when there was no light for them to pull strength from she knew they never would. She simply reached out very slowly, feeling about the very small and shallow circle that was her pit. It took only a moment or two for her to gather that she could hardly sit up straight without hitting her head and shoulders against the top, and it wasn't even wide enough for her to stretch out all the way in. she tried pushing against the top door, but it was very solid and wasn't about to budge. She couldn't help but feel grateful that at least Jareth had said that he would be back for her tomorrow, rather than leaving her here for God only knew how long, but at the same time she dreaded that time.

That didn't really matter. What mattered was that she failed. She had a chance to escape, and it turned out not to be much of a chance at all. Jareth had known. And he had to have known for most of the day. Maybe the brownies had snitched on her. Maybe Mavid had overheard her last night. If he had known even that far back… one thing was for certain, he had at least known by supper because it was obvious that whatever they had eaten hadn't been the sauce she had placed the leaf in. So, all through the meal, he had been playing with her. Had everyone else been in on it, too? Clora, Rally, even Tallia? They had all gone off to bed exhausted just like Jareth and Mavid had. Had they even been tired?

They had found out somehow exactly what she and the worm had been planning to do, and had allowed her to go only as far with it as they had wanted, as far as Jareth had wanted. Sarah continued to feel around her meek little hole, letting out a startled scream that echoed off the walls when her hand touched some unknown slimy substance. She scraped her hand hard against the wall to get whatever the hell it was off her as the tears started to fall freely down her face till she not only could no longer keep her eyes open, but till they had sapped all the strength she had left from her body and left her a curled-up mess on the floor of the dark oubliette, her sobs echoing off the walls but only being heard again by her own ears as she was left alone.

X

Madunet and her gruesome sisters all stared down at the Path Master as he sat before them, telling them about the escape, and how it was foiled by Jareth before they even got a chance to get away. The Underground women all turned on one another instantly, their silky voices filling the Crying Caves and sounding so out of place among the horde of hags as they bickered and expressed their concerns to each other.

Only Madunet stayed quiet and calm as their plans came falling around their heads. At length, Madunet turned to her sisters, her lyrical voice rising above them all. "Silence, sisters! To hear you anyone would think that something is wrong."

"But everything has gone wrong, Sister," Nedtuam caterwauled, "We have not the baby or the woman and Carrie will be calling on us at any minute."

"So, what? So, what?!" Madunet demanded, "What does that change? We made no plans to give either to Carrie, it was already agreed that we were to send her our changeling children first before we were to send her own children through, and we were only going to keep the baby and kill the woman anyway so nothing is lost."

"What?!" the Path Master shouted in surprise over her shoulder as her sisters all nodded in agreement as they realized she was right.

Maybe they couldn't kill the girl for revenge, or keep the baby captive and force the goblin king to bring them more babies, but they could still send their own children forward into Aboveground. After all, it was the children that mattered.

"Ye can't be serious!" the worm shouted.

"Be silent," Madunet demanded in her oddly angelic voice, swinging a gnarled and misshapen wad of skin that might have barely passed for an arm down where the Path Master sat. She missed though, as she had pretty much assumed she would, as the Path Master had already moved across the cave.

His voice shouted down on them, from his new spot out of reach on the wall, causing all of them to turn to face him. "Ye miserable ol' hags!" the worm shouted, "Ye think yer plan was clever, but ye won't think so when the Goblin King comes a callin'." With that last remark, the worm inched forward from his spot and disappeared once again.

"Ignore him, sisters!" Madunet ordered, "There are far more important matters at hand right now. Carrie will call on us at any moment. Tenudam, fetch the changelings. At least two children will be passing through that mirror tonight."

X

Karen made sure the gun was loaded and ready, turning the safety on before tucking it in the waist of her jeans against the small of her back. Once she was ready she stepped up to the mirror and cleared her throat. "Madunet, Madunet, Madunet."

The image on the mirror hazed about as though the reflecting glass had turned into water and eventually cleared to show Karen not her own reflection, but rather the inside of one of the hollows of the Crying Caves, a large group of the Underground Women standing in front of the reflection like they had been waiting for her. At the very forefront of the group was Madunet. They were so hideous it was hard for Karen to even look right at them. She steeled her will, however, to get her son back.

"We are ready to make good on our deal," Madunet, informed her in that oddly lovely voice that all the hags seemed to possess.

Karen couldn't even begin to describe the relief that swept through her at that. "Oh… oh thank you, thank you so much. Where are they?"

"First, we send our children as planned. Then you get yours."

Karen scowled at that. "Well, yes but… can I not even see my children first? You do have them, don't you?"

All the Underground women that she could see in the mirror stirred in indignation and offense. "How dare you!" Madunet shouted, "We always keep our word! We promise you, we will send through our children and then you will get yours! You doubt us and we will call the whole deal off. You know that we like children."

Karen inwardly scolded herself as hard as the day is long and bowed low to the old crones in apology. She really did have no reason to doubt them, and if they said they spoke only the truth she couldn't very well call them out on it, and if they did trick her she had ways of taking care of things. "I am so sorry. I beg your forgiveness. You're right, first yours, then mine."

One of the old women stepped forward, ushering in front of her two changeling children. The Underground Women were notoriously vile looking, but the changelings were not much of an improvement. They looked like a cross between human children and animals, with slightly pointed faces and amazingly sharp looking teeth at the end of their little muzzles. They stood up like children did, but it looked like they had been stripped of their skin with only the very thinnest pink membrane covering them. The eyes of a changeling were always so otherworldly, nothing but pools of gleaming gold with small black pupils in the center. The two changelings that Karen looked upon now were no exception. One was newborn, so small that the other one had to carry it in its arms.

It was only by a great effort that Karen kept her composure, her only giveaway to her repulsion being the sweat on her brow and pooling under her arms.

"Call them to you, Carrie, so that they may pass the barrier unharmed and then you will have your children," Madunet instructed. "Their names are Warmouth and Coroner."

Karen took a deep breath so that her voice wouldn't shake and summoned her courage enough her reach her hand out as if for the older changeling child to take. She didn't look the creature in its yellow eyes, knowing that she would lose it if she did, that she would see the evil she was bringing to the world reflected in those eyes. "C-come to me, Warmouth and Coroner. Come to me. Come to me."

She watched with growing dread as the child stepped forward, the younger one still cradled in its hold as its golden eyes stayed focused on her. The creature stepped into the mirror and she watched as once more the glass rippled, allowing the thing to pass through.

She had seen a lot of magic in her years but Karen had never seen a changeling so close, and now that she did she wasn't upset in the least bit that all the Underground Women's changelings had been murdered after she had left last time. A civic service if anything really. She had never seen the passing of one from the Underground into the Aboveground before either. As the mirror gave way and the creature stepped out, she lost some of her nerve and closed her eyes tight rather than watch as the disgusting creature took her hand.

To her surprise, when the thing did, in fact, take her hand, it felt just like a normal person's hand touching her own, something that stunned her enough that she had to open her eyes and look up. The golden eyes she had seen before no longer stared at her, but instead, a pair of green eyes did. Sarah's green eyes. The creature holding her hand now looked just like Sarah, standing nude before her in the middle of the field, holding an equally nude Toby in her arms. The Sarah that stood before her now smiled at her, but there was something wicked there, and although the two creatures looked just like Sarah and Toby, they weren't. They shared the same eyes now as her kids, but the evil could still be seen there inside them.

Karen could feel herself gaping as she side-stepped around the changeling doppelgangers, pulling her hand back from the fake Sarah as she stepped over to the mirror, the anger evident on her face. "They look just like my own kids!" she hissed at the women, "How do you expect me to explain two sets of kids who look exactly the same?!"

"The beauty of it is that you'll never have to. You may keep those two as a token set since we weren't able to get your own," came the response.

Karen could hardly contain her fury. "That wasn't our agreement at all! You lied to me, call them back to you now!"

"We lied about nothing!" one of the others shouted at her. "We said, first our children go through and then you will have yours. We sent ours through, and now you have yours as if they were never stolen away in the first place! They will replace your children perfectly."

Karen couldn't believe it, they had tricked her! They had no intention of giving her back her real children, which she could easily gather that they didn't have, nor of taking back the two changelings they had sent her!

To hell with them. Maybe she couldn't get her kids back from them, but she wasn't going to do the world such a disservice as to let two changelings wonder around in it.

As the Underground Women all started to laugh at her from the other side of the mirror, Karen pulled out the gun from behind her back and clicked off the safety. She took aim and shot twice, both bullets hitting the fake Toby, and in that second everything changed.

The Underground Women started screaming, but not louder than the changeling Sarah did as she dropped the dead baby Toby to the ground. Karen took aim again but the creature jumped out of the way, not away from her, but surprisingly closer to her as it tried to reach the mirror.

Karen knew at once what it was doing, trying to crawl back to the safety of its world on the other side. The Underground women had already started to call it back. Karen was having none of that though for the way they had tricked her. She aimed her gun at the mirror and fired twice, shattering it into hundreds of pieces that rained down on the stranded changeling. Karen took aim again, this time aiming down at the back of the changeling's dark long hair.

"Freeze!" A male voice screamed behind her, startling her to death. "Freeze or I'll shoot!"

Karen continued to look down at the changeling, who had started to turn its head around. She had to kill it, and she had to kill it now.

A gunshot went off, which Karen found very strange since she hadn't pulled the trigger yet. She looked down at her gun, the sound of the shot still ringing in her ears. She looked right past it to the ground, watching as it suddenly and very quickly came up to meet her, the trampled corn husks smacking against the side of her head and it took her a moment to even realize that she had just fallen to the ground. She had been shot.

X

Nothing exciting ever happened in a small town. Two kids being stolen was big news. So, imagine how much bigger it was when the kids were found almost two weeks later, being gunned down in a field by their mother. The baby shot to death, the mother gunned down by the local police, and the daughter scared out of her mind. They would alert the father soon enough that his daughter was safe, but he was going to take the news of his wife and son hard.

They had already found tickets for two to Brazil in the car, possibly meaning that the wife had been planning to run off to there with a lover or something. The media would have a field day. This wasn't just a local story, something like this went to national news. They would make up enough stories about what all had happened to keep the people plenty entertained, right now he didn't give a fuck what the whole scandal behind the story was. The important thing was that the girl at least was safe.

He couldn't remember everything yet, just flashes after he had heard those initial shots in the field. Candy had just shown up and when the shots were first fired he had taken out his gun and ran into the field, Candy a couple paces behind him. He remembered seeing the wife standing over the girl, holding a gun at her ready to shoot. For some reason, a mirror lay broken. He told her not to shoot but had seen she was going to anyway. He had been quicker.

Officer Marcus Taylor sat on the back of the paramedic that had eventually shown up, next to the frightened young girl who he had just saved the life of. He was sure that her head was spinning just as much as his was. Officer Candy stood next to him, just shaking his head occasionally and sipping at the coffee that one of the other officers that had shown up had handed him. Taylor watched as the Sergeant went around, talking to the other officers and the paramedics. The guy that owned the property had already come down from his house, still in pajamas and worried as hell. At some point, the sergeant would have to take his statement, and Candy's, and the young girl's.

Taylor had never had reason to touch his gun while on duty before, much less use it.

He looked over at the beautiful young girl sitting next to him, her eyes still wide with fear. As he looked at her, he just couldn't convince himself that he had done anything wrong by protecting her. She looked so sweet and innocent and scared. He just knew that she was just one of those girls that could do no wrong and could never hurt a fly.

He had been right to save her….

Surely.

Officer Marcus Taylor, Gopher to his fellow officers, could only sit there next to her and wish so very hard that his life was boring again.


	25. Chapter 25

Beta for this chapter is The lovely The Art Of Suicide

 **The previous night:**

Jareth had a wonderful time with his son in the music room, a smile absolutely glued to his face as he carried his tuckered out little prince back to the nursery. Toby was already sound asleep in his arms, his little head resting against Jareth's shoulder as he walked along. They had spent the better part of two hours just playing music together, Jareth showing Toby the different instruments and then laughing when Toby ultimately decided they all were to be played like a drum no matter what they were.

The most precious thing though was when Jareth would sing and Toby would bounce on his legs a little bit in his own sort of dance. It was absolutely the most charming thing in the world.

It was late though, no doubt the others would be finishing supper if they hadn't already, and here he hadn't even gotten anything to eat yet. He could see from some of the windows- the ones that didn't just constantly show rain or sunshine or snow no matter what was actually going on outside- that it was dark outside, and so it was past his son's bedtime. He was surprised though when, as he came upon the nursery, he heard footsteps approaching fast up the stairs. If it had just been one set he would have thought it was Sarah, but two caught his interest and he turned around to stop and wait.

Ishapell and Torik came up the stairs and rounded the corner, relief on Ishapell's face when she caught sight of him, her pet following along obediently. "Oh, thank the Gods I found you cousin!" she gasped, winded from the stairs still. Jareth was surprised that both she and her pet looked distraught, although the human never looked up from the floor and was equally out of breath, he could still tell from his stance and the way his mouth kind of hung the slightest bit that something was wrong.

"Shhh," Jareth warned his cousin as he gestured his head to Toby in his arms, cautioning her not to wake the little tike.

She nodded and kept her voice low. "Of course, your highness, but I must speak with you… now."

Something was definitely wrong. "Come in here then while I put him down," Jareth invited the two, taking Toby into the nursery.

Ishapell and Torik followed behind, Torik closing the nursery door behind them.

Jareth looked back at Ishapell over his shoulder. "Well? What is it?"

"It's about Sarah," Ishapell warned him.

Jareth turned around quickly and there must have been something on his face because Ishapell immediately held her hands out palms down between them as if to say 'calm down', "She is not hurt."

Jareth did force himself to calm down then, knowing that she was at least alright. He ran his hand through Toby's growing hair. "What is it then?"

Ishapell looked back at Torik as if for support in what she was to say, but the human boy didn't even look up at her as he continued to stand by the door and stare at the floor, obviously nervous to be in this room. "Well, she… she might be…"

Jareth rolled his eyes. "Has she done anything?" he asked, figuring she had broken another one of his rules and, like Clora had been so eager to do, now Ishapell was here to tattle on her- not that he discouraged it.

"Well, not yet really," Ishapell mumbled.

Jareth's brows knitted together in impatience. "If you have something to tell me then you best do so, cousin."

Ishapell nodded her head, aware that she was stalling. "I just don't want Sarah to get in trouble is all," she admitted.

"If my wife has done something or will do something to get herself in trouble then no blame rests on you. I appreciate any concern for her you may have, but if you know she is up to something you must tell me. If she hasn't done anything yet but plans to it might save her some reprimand in the long run for me to know and see that it does not happen." Jareth reasoned with the female, meaning it when he said he was touched by her concern for his wife. He knew that they hadn't exactly gotten off on the right foot at first.

Ishapell fidgeted with her hands. "I don't just worry about her getting in trouble with you, but that she might be in a different kind of trouble."

Jareth frowned at that. "What do you mean?"

Ishapell's eyes flicked to Toby. "Will you put your son down? Then I will feel better about telling you."

That was not good.

Jareth did so without comment though, feeling very worried suddenly about what she might have to say as he placed Toby gently into his crib with such ease that his son made no fuss whatsoever and never once stirred from his sleep. He turned back to his cousin so she knew she had his full attention.

"Like I said, your majesty, I don't want to see Sarah in trouble, but I heard her planning something just now, and I'm afraid she'll possibly be in danger if I don't tell you."

"So then tell me," Jareth growled out, trying to keep his cool and already failing.

"Sarah… Sarah was in the garden just now, Torik and I were going to stick to our plans to take a walk in the garden, but when we got to the door we couldn't help but hear her on the other side… talking to someone." Ishapell wrung her hands out till Jareth thought that they would snap into little pieces against each other. "I think she's planning to run away."

X

 **Currently:**

Jareth's mind couldn't help but drift back to the night before last when he had first learned of Sarah's plans, as he listened to Mavid giving him his report.

It was early morning now, the sun not even up yet. Jareth sat on his throne. He hadn't slept at all last night, and couldn't have even if he had tried. The strange thing was that he didn't even feel tired, he was past the point of sleep. He would yawn now and then and his eyes stung around the corners, but in all honesty, he didn't feel at all tired.

Although he listened to Mavid, he looked as though he was hardly paying attention at all. He sat slouched on his throne, leaning against the side with one leg up. He held his riding crop in his hands, turning it over and over carelessly. His eyes were focused on it, but not seeing it. His mind kept going back to the night before when he had first found out about Sarah's plans to run away. He had been so shocked… so angry… so betrayed.

His mind just kept throwing at him what Mavid and his father had already told him; that it was Carrie all over again. At least with her, they had been happy in the beginning, but Sarah wasn't even allowing the chance for happiness. Every time those thoughts came up he pushed them down, but it was harder each time. This just couldn't be how this played out.

They hadn't found the worm, that much truly didn't surprise him, although it infuriated him none the less.

"He could be anywhere in the Labyrinth," Mavid continued. "We won't find him unless he comes to us. I highly doubt he will try to contact your wife again for a very long time though."

Jareth let out a long and slow breath, "And the Underground Women? Was I right that they were in on this?"

There was a long silence. It wasn't until Jareth looked up that Mavid spoke. "When I arrived at the Crying Caves last night the Underground women were there, in absolute fits already. Apparently, they had sent their only two remaining changelings through a mirror they were able to get a hold of and had watched as Carrie killed them herself. After a little persuasion, I got out of them that Carrie had contacted them shortly after the counsel had refused to send her children back to her, and that they had made a deal. They would send their changelings through the mirror, and I gathered that they were to send Sarah and Toby through with them but it was hard to tell for sure with all the screaming."

Jareth could tell from the way Mavid's eyes flicked away when he said that and the way the corner of his lip curled up just the slightest bit that he had used his usual forms of 'persuasion' on them. "They actually were willing to make a deal with Carrie again? After what it cost them the last time how could they possibly have thought to get away with such a thing?" Jareth asked in mild disbelief.

The corner of Mavid's lip quirked up again at that. "This part is the real kick in the head. Once I made it so there were a few less voices screaming over each other, one of the sisters told me about how that was the deal they had made with Carrie, but they in fact still hadn't forgiven her for the changelings they had lost the last time. They had made some other plans for your wife and son."

Jareth gripped his crop a little tighter in his fists and his voice came out so low you could barely hear the strain as he held his temper. "Such as?"

"They were planning to slay the queen to punish Carrie, and then keep your son a prisoner to punish you."

Jareth could hear the blood rushing in his ears and feel the way it pulsed through his temples as he closed his eyes tight and tried to focus on his breathing. His blood boiled with his anger. Just the thought of someone trying to cause his family harm in any way…

Jareth raised his crop and brought it down hard on his own leg. The sting of the crop never reached his leg through the black lacquer shielding of his armor, and never would no matter how hard he swung. It helped to release a bit of his frustration none the less, but not nearly enough.

If Sarah had gotten away with her little scheme… Jareth thanked the Gods again that she had chosen to leave Toby behind regardless of what the outcome would have been.

He had been very busy indeed yesterday. After Ishapell had told him what she knew of Sarah's escape he hadn't trusted himself anywhere near her and so had gone to wait in Mavid's chambers till his attendant had come back from chasing that wood nymph. After that, it had been a trial indeed to keep himself from going back to Sarah's room and throttling her. He had summoned up a crystal to view her, seeing that she was indeed in her bed at that point, laying under the covers as she tried to fall asleep. Her lips were turned up in a smile.

He had hurled the crystal against the wall, taking satisfaction in it when it had shattered.

He wasn't going to stop her though, that much he was certain of, not right away anyway. He had to know what she would do when it came down to it. He wasn't sure why he had needed to know, but he had. He had kept the faintest glimmer of hope alive to the very end that she would change her mind and so had spent the entire day making sure that nothing would keep her from being able to leave if that was indeed what she chose. As a bonus, this was a most opportune chance to be able to catch that pretentious fish-bait of a worm and make it so he would never again be a nuisance to him.

So, despite the foul taste, it left in his mouth with the knowledge that he was making it at all possible for Sarah's little scheme to work, he had gone about doing so anyway. He had done everything for her, making sure that Rally held their lessons in the room he had picked near the kitchens, warning the kitchen knocker to open for her without argument, telling the brownies to make sure they were not in the kitchen when Sarah first arrived, and to leave a decoy sauce sitting out.

He hadn't told anyone but Mavid of her treachery and had threatened his cousin and her pet to not let on to anyone else as well. If Sarah had backed out of her scheme, then there would be no reason for anyone to know. Not that there was any reason anyway. If it got out that she had tried to escape him it would only disgrace them both. So rather than letting anyone else in on the plan, he had simply requested that the cooks use the sauce that she had tainted in everyone's dishes except for his and Mavid's'. It had to be convincing to Sarah after all that she had succeeded in poisoning the entire castle, and he and Mavid would simply go along with it.

He had gone to make sure that the garden door remained unlocked, which it never was once everyone turned in for the night, and at that point the brownies had informed him that she had indeed come to the kitchens and had done something to the sauce. The thought that she just might really intend to go through with this…

He hadn't planned to, but he and Mavid had gone to see Aboris before supper, making them just the slightest bit late. He had been strung out, wired and in an extremely dangerous mood. If he had gone to supper in such a state she would have seen it for sure and known that he must have found out something. He would never give her the option of leaving him, but he did want to know what she would do if given the chance. If he threw open his castle doors for her would she stay or take his son and run? He wanted to know the outcome without worrying about her escaping.

Mavid honestly hadn't seemed surprised when he had told him what he had learned, and of course agreed to go along with Jareth's plan, keeping his own opinions wisely to himself, but as the day brought them closer and closer to supper, Jareth noticed that even Mavid was tightly wound, his eyes practically sharp with the anticipation of punishment.

Aboris had obediently given them both a small amount of gash weed, which when inhaled through either the mouth or nose had the same properties as an Aboveground tranquilizer. It was enough to calm them both down enough to at least make them seem relaxed. Jareth had been worried when Sarah had first seen him at dinner that maybe she had seen that his eyes were slightly dilated, but she had seemed to think better of it. The tranq had worked to his advantage later to help slow his breathing and relax him enough so he would easily seem asleep after supper. All through supper he had tried to act as natural as possible, but just like when he had visited her in the morning, he had even noticed that he was being overly nice; most likely in an unconscious act of encouraging her to change her mind about trying to escape.

After Jareth and Sarah had retired to their room Mavid, acting on Jareth's instruction, had made sure that the rest were indeed all going to bed, then had taken Toby up to the nursery for Tallia, putting Jareth's son to bed and then taking his shadow form to lay in wait. Jareth wanted to know what Sarah was going to do, giving her every opportunity he could to change her mind about the whole thing, but he wouldn't risk his son in the slightest. He had instructed Mavid to stop her and call for him the moment Sarah should try to ghost away his son.

So, when some time later Mavid had come to his room and informed him that Sarah had simply said goodbye to Toby and left, he had been stunned to hear such a thing truly. He had never expected her to do such a thing.

He couldn't really explain it, but when he heard what she had done all the anger that had been coursing through him as he sat on his bed and waited for Mavid… it was as if someone had just reached out and pulled all his rage away from him. He wasn't left with happiness or any form of solace, far from. But he no longer felt the tension that had coiled inside of him just moments before.

The thing that killed him was, he knew that because of that moment if Sarah had even made it to the garden and changed her mind… he could have forgiven her for her traitorous attempt to make a fool of him. He would have allowed her to come back into the castle believing that she could have gotten away with it, and honestly, that would have been most preferred because if so he wouldn't have had to worry about her trying such a thing again in the future.

He and Mavid went outside the castle walls to wait, and it wasn't until she suddenly appeared outside the garden that any of his anger returned to him, but not nearly as fiercely as he had felt it before. She had tried to escape and failed, and now he had the grim task of punishing her for it. She would probably hold that against him too, even though it was her own fault she was to be punished.

This time it would be more difficult to punish her fittingly. Tomorrow he had to present her before the counsel after all. He had thought briefly about calling it off altogether and just accepting that he would have to make do with her as a concubine, but when Mavid had come to him and told him of how she had spared his son from her exodus it only seemed now more than ever before that he had made the right choice in picking a mother for his son. She loved Toby deeply, enough so to be able to look past her own selfish wants to know what would be best for his son. Who could he possibly hope to find that could love his son more than Sarah, who loved him so much she was willing to give him up if it meant that was what was best for him. The sheer strength of her love made him covet her even more. He wanted that love for himself, just as he would want a Pegasus's quickness and strength for his carriages or a goblin army for its protection of his castle. For whatever the reasons, he wanted Sarah to love him.

"Jareth?" Mavid spoke up, pulling Jareth back from the sinking spiral that were his own thoughts.

Jareth recollected his focus and brought his hand up to pinch the bridge of his nose between his fingers. "You took care of them all, right? The Underground women?"

"I trusted you would want me to, they had no changelings left this time, sending the only two they had from the last time off to their deaths in the aboveground. This time I dealt with the root of the problem."

Jareth nodded his head in agreement. "Did they happen to have any stolen children there?"

Mavid shook his head. "No, I looked."

Jareth nodded again. At least he didn't have to see to finding homes for stolen children on top of everything else on his plate now. Even if the worm got away, the underground women were no longer a problem, and never would be again. Two changelings were sent to Carrie in the Aboveground… now that was interesting.

Jareth conjured up a crystal and turned it on his wrist, confused when he saw not Carrie as he had expected, but an image of pure white. He came to realize that he was looking at a white sheet for some reason. There was a human walking next to the blanket, dressed in scrubs and placing rubber gloves over his hands. He pulled the sheet back and Jareth almost dropped the crystal, slamming it down on the seat of the throne next to him where he couldn't see it as his brain tried to rationalize what he had just glimpsed. It had been a coroner's room, that was for sure, and a body had been under that sheet…

It couldn't have been Carrie. Surely, his gaze was deceiving him.

Surely…

"What's wrong?" Mavid asked, concerned from the expression on Jareth's face and the very rigid stance in which he sat at the moment.

Jareth braced himself and brought the crystal back up again, slowly looking back down into it.

It was Carrie.

Jareth slowly turned that crystal away from him and once more set it down on the seat beside him. "Carrie's dead," he stated simply, his voice sounding hollow even to him.

Mavid's face held the same shock and disbelief that Jareth's must have. Jareth couldn't help but feel a slight tightening in his chest at learning that the woman who had been his second wife for over a hundred years…

"Are you alright?" Mavid asked, his voice careful.

Jareth forced himself to shove the grief aside, reminding himself of all she had cost him, done to him, put him through. He wouldn't allow himself to forget them all and remember only the good times just because now she was dead. It was a good thing, he told himself. Now he didn't have to worry about her trying to interfere with his family anymore. "Don't be foolish, I'm fine." he scolded Mavid.

Jareth thought about that man she had duped into marrying her in Aboveground, Sarah's father, and turned the crystal around in his hand again.

This time he could see that man, see that he was much scruffier looking than Jareth remembered from the times he had glanced him before, his hair longer and unkempt, his cheeks red and eyes puffy from weeping. He was holding someone in his arms, crying into their shoulder as his hand ran over and over their long dark hair. It was indistinguishable what he was saying exactly, but it sounded like maybe he was praying.

"We just have a couple more questions please," a gentle male voice coaxed from outside of Jareth's view.

Sarah's father eventually got a hold of himself enough to nod his head and although he kept an arm tight around the woman he was holding, he released her enough that she could turn with him to the voice. Jareth almost dropped the crystal, losing his grip on it and just barely re-catching it when he saw Sarah there, except he knew for a fact that it wasn't Sarah. Even in the world of magic it was impossible for there to be two of the same person. That had to be one of the changelings that the underground women had sent. It must have taken the shape of Sarah, and no doubt that meant the other one had taken to look like Toby. It seemed like just the sort of stunt the underground women would pull.

Jareth started laughing before he even truly thought it funny, he did, in fact, find it to be hilarious though. As far as Jareth was concerned, justice was served.

Mavid scowled in his confusion at Jareth's sudden mirth, to which Jareth tossed him the crystal so he could see for himself. When Mavid looked at it he scowled even deeper and then astonishment washed over his face. "The changeling?!"

Jareth nodded. "Apparently, Carrie wasn't able to kill them both. Who knows? Maybe that changeling killed her. Isn't that precious, Sarah's father must think he finally has his child back. She can never be sent back now." She had no reason to run away if there was nowhere for her to run to.

His sour mood had suddenly vastly improved at the unexpected but welcomed results of this whole mess. Maybe things weren't nearly as lost as he had thought they were. After all, with the Underground Women gone, the worm in hiding, and the changeling laying claim to Sarah's life Aboveground she had nothing and no one to encourage another escape attempt. She was his now. She had no choice but to see that.

Jareth got up from his throne, slipping the crop back into the leg of his boot and adjusting the collar of his black armor. "I suppose I should go say good morning to my wife then."

Mavid's attention shot from the crystal to Jareth at that. He looked at him as though Jareth had just grown another head. "Your wife? You mean to keep her as such?" Mavid asked, the shock thick in his voice.

Jareth nodded his head as he stepped down from his throne. "That's right."

Mavid said nothing, but the look of disapproval in his blue eyes said more than enough as he met Jareth's gaze and held it.

"I trust there is no objection to that."

Mavid's gaze never wavered from Jareth's when he spoke, which spoke volumes to how close they were despite their stations. It reminded Jareth again that he needed to look to Toby's future in securing an attendant for him. "I hadn't realized that you intended to still make her your wife after last night."

"More than I ever intended before as a matter of fact."

Mavid looked down at the ground rather than Jareth then, as though that would hide the scowl on his face.

"I know what you're thinking-"

"I doubt that," Mavid interrupted. "You've never thought yourself an idiot before in your entire life."

The rage was enough to stun Jareth in his tracks completely, but only for a moment. Mavid's own armor made it impossible for Jareth to grip any fabric there, but he instead shoved against Mavid's shoulders, forcing him up against the wall. Even though both knew in hand to hand combat than Jareth could very well hold his own, Mavid was still more skilled than he. It wasn't the fear that Jareth was stronger than him that kept Mavid from fighting back at all, but rather the respect for his and Jareth's stations that stayed his defense. His deep blue eyes met Jareth's, his face without expression or emotion. Jareth's own was the picture of danger with how hot his temperament was running now.

He'd had a very emotionally rough couple of days, was running on almost two full days without rest, and his wife was in a shallow and dark oubliette as punishment for trying to poison him and run away. He was **really** notin the mood for any of Mavid's or anyone else's opinions or solutions or input of any kind.

Mavid was the one to eventually turn his eyes to the floor.

Jareth released him, but didn't back off at first, holding his ground so that there were no delusions between either of them just who was alpha in a way that came naturally and biologically to all males of any species or race.

Jareth moved past Mavid, ordering him to not follow as a final punishment for the male's offense. No matter what Mavid's personal feelings were about Jareth's decisions with Sarah, Jareth knew that his friend still would have enjoyed and no doubt had been hoping for the opportunity to at the very least witness some of the punishment that would be bestowed upon her by Jareth. Jareth didn't have to look over his shoulder as he headed for the dungeons to know that Mavid was indeed scowling at the stone floor like he was debating trying to stab it.

X

"Oh Sarah, wake up, please wake up," a soft voice whispered urgently from somewhere around her.

Sarah opened her eyes as she came out of her hard-won sleep, wanting to groan when the soft light from an overhead torch illuminated just enough to remind her of where she was and how she had gotten there. Sarah's back and legs ached as they begged for her to allow them to stretch out, but the shallow and small oubliette left her no options to do such a thing. She had to stay curled up on her side just to fit. She remembered belatedly that someone had spoken to her and that surely there must be a source of the torch light.

She shifted around slightly on her back and looked up through the small holes in the grating of the oubliette's lid, still in a sleeper's daze. She could see that someone was indeed on the other side, but not who. "Who's there?" she asked, her voice cracking from the dryness that sleep had left her throat and lips in and she had to take a moment to clear her throat.

The familiar voice on the other side of the grate was practically frantic in answering. "Oh, Sarah! It's me, it's Ishapell, I had no clue that he would put you here!"

"Isha-" Sarah shifted around again so she could lay halfway on her back. "Is it morning yet?"

"Very soon, Miss. The sun is rising even now, I had to come down here and tell you-"

"Ishapell, you have to get out of here!" Sarah hissed back just as frantically through the holes of the grate, now very much awake and alert. Jareth had said he'd come back for her in the morning and she didn't want to think of what would happen if he came and found Ishapell here. Maybe he would think that the female was trying to help Sarah escape and punish Ishapell too, or at least send her away. Sarah very much didn't want to have that. "If Jareth finds you here you could be in big trouble and he might be on his way right now! You have to leave!"

"Please though, I must tell you that I'm very truly sorry," Ishapell pleaded, her voice sounding shaky.

The tone of her voice gave Sarah a very deep feeling of dread for what she was about to apologize for. Sarah laid back against the dirt of her little prison as though she had suddenly lost all strength in her muscles, her heart beating very quickly and slowly at the same time. She could practically see the slight vibration of her chest every time it beat inside of her. The way Ishapell had said it, somehow Sarah knew what was coming but her mind refused to recognize it all the same.

"Sarah? Sarah, I'm s-sorry," Ishapell sobbed, trying hard to hold back her tears as everything else spilled out of her. "I never thought that this would happen to you, I swear I didn't. I- I told Jareth what you were planning."

Sarah felt her eyes close of their own accord as Ishapell continued. Every part of her felt heavy.

"I only did it because I was afraid for you. Last night you suggested I not take Torik for a walk in the garden, well I thought I would anyway. When we got to the door I could hear you on the other side and I didn't mean to eavesdrop, but I heard you nonetheless and when I heard that you were planning to run away to the Crying Caves I was afraid for you. The Underground Women are not to be trusted and if Jareth found you out during… I just… I just thought it would be better for you if I went to him with what I had learned straight away. I was sure that Jareth would punish you somehow, maybe some more lashes, but better than a punishment he would give you if he found you out later. I didn't think he would let you go along with your plan anyway." Another sob echoed off the walls of the dungeon and Ishapell tried to collect herself as best she could. "I- I'm s-so so sorry Sar-"

"Get out."

"Wha- Sarah-" Ishapell sobbed.

Sarah gripped a handful of the dirt in her cell and threw it up at the holes of the grating, having to shield her face and eyes when most of it came right back down on her after either failing to escape the lid or falling right back down through it. The sound of Ishapell's surprised yelp on the other side was mildly satisfying though and Sarah could hear the female move away from the oubliette, the light retreating with her. "GET OUT OF HERE!" Sarah screamed again, this time so loud that her voice almost gave out before she was even done and stung fiercely when she stopped.

Tears were already falling from her eyes but she didn't notice them at all as she screamed again despite the pain of her throat. She could trust no one down here! She was sick of it, sick of it all! All the fake pleasantries and the underhandedness, and the games, and the tricks and lies. Backstabbers! Every single one of them! She had trusted Clora… she betrayed her for the amusement of it. She had trusted Ishapell… who had betrayed her too, for reasons Sarah wouldn't, couldn't, and didn't want to understand. The kicker was that she knew Ishapell no doubt really did think that she was helping her by doing so, by making it impossible for her to leave this world, this castle, this messed up life that she was being forced to live!

The sound of Ishapell's heels running back the way she had come pounded in Sarah's head just the same as her own heartbeat did and Sarah wiped the tears from her eyes, telling herself she wouldn't cry over this, even though deep down she really wanted to.

It was total darkness once again in the dungeon, but Sarah opened her eyes anyway and stared into the blackness. It reminded her of what she had seen the night before when she had been ambushed by Jareth and Mavid outside the garden. Mavid had been nothing but darkness when she had run into him too at first, and it sent shivers of fear up and down her spine thinking that for all she knew Mavid could be in that form now right above her and she probably wouldn't be able to find him even if she had a flashlight to search with.

Her nightmarish thoughts were cut off when a noise outside startled her back to the reality of things. She stayed very still and quiet as she listened for the noise again, any slight noise.

After a moment or two of hearing nothing, she heard shifting fabric so faint she would have missed it if she had breathed. She could hear her heartbeat kick up in fear again. If it was indeed Jareth or Mavid they would have used a torch, wouldn't they?

"Sarah? Did I hear someone say Sarah?" a creaky voice spoke in the darkness, coming from outside her oubliette somewhere.

Sarah just about jumped out of her skin when it had first spoken, but her heart fluttered with joy when she heard it. "H-Hoggle?!" she gasped.

"Sarah! Tis ya then after all!" her friend's voice responded. "We heard 'em bring someone down here lass night, never dreamed it'd be ya!"

She could hear a lot more shifting from somewhere in the dungeons overhead and then two more familiar voices joined in.

"Sar-wah!"

"My Lady, ist thou alright?!"

"Wha' the heck is ya doing in here?!" Hoggle's gruff voice demanded.

Her heart beat painfully in her chest upon hearing their voices, and although she wanted to answer them, she was left with no voice and scarce little breath as she fought to keep herself collected. She had spoken with them all in her mirror last just before Jareth had come to kidnap her. They had been fine, not in pain nor afraid at all. The only reason she hadn't asked Jareth about her dear friends thus far was because since she had heard nothing about nor from them that maybe they had skipped Jareth's mind and she didn't want them drawn to his attention as traitors to yet be punished or something to use against her. Her heart ached to know that this whole time they had in fact been locked up right below her feet.

"Sarah, what're ya doing here?! An' not just in this here dungeon, but back in this here world?"

"Hoggle, Ludo… Sir Didymus!" she managed to gasp out, twisting around once more to lay semi on her back. "I-it's a long story… what are you guys doing here?!"

"Fear not, fair maiden, we are not harmed," Didymus reassured her from the darkness overhead somewhere.

"Ludo scared!" the great beast whined, pulling at Sarah's heart.

"After ya beat that rat Jareth he seemed ta just disappear from this world altogether fer a lil while, but when he come back he found us leaving the castle and had us thrown in here instead."

When he was gone that must have been when he had gone to collect her and Toby. Sarah could feel her tears sliding slowly down her cheeks back towards her ears. That meant that they had been down here for the last two weeks?! She felt so guilty, it was all her fault. Her fault that she had made them help her, that they had been in Jareth's castle, that they had been placed down here. It was her fault that they had spent the last two weeks down here. She had thought that she had been protecting them, but hadn't let herself think that if they were already in trouble that by not asking she had only condemned them to an even longer incarceration down here.

The soft sounds of her sniffling bounced around the emptiness of the dungeon and it was only moments before Hoggle spoke up. "Now don ya go fretting over the likes of us Sarah, we ain't worth it and besides, tisn't as bad as yer letting yerself think it tis. We ain't been forgotten or starved at all, and like the others down here we's only here till the end of our sentence."

"W-when is that?" Sarah sniffed.

"Two more days my lady," Sir Didymus piped in, his voice ever upbeat and unafraid, "Tis the stuff that tests one's metal, separating the foxes from the pups and all that! We are a stout-hearted group, and so we will no doubt prevail!"

Sarah couldn't help but smile and even laugh shakily at Didymus's ever brave and optimistic demeanor. She was glad to hear that they were at least alright, even if Ludo was a little scared, and that they would be freed soon enough. "D-don't be scared, Ludo," Sarah tried to comfort him, speaking back into the darkness. "A little bit of darkness should be nothing for a big brave beast like you who fought his way through to the Castle beyond the Goblin City."

There was a pause and when Ludo answered she couldn't hear any more of the fear or dismay in his tone. "Yeah!"

"Are you guys in an oubliette too?" She shuddered to think of them all squeezed into one the size of her own.

"No, my Lady, we are in a cell."

Thank goodness for that at least.

"Ye still haven' told us wha' the heck yer doing here though!" Hoggle prompted her.

Where did she even start? "I was kidnapped by Jareth and brought here to marry him and help him raise Toby, who it turns out is his son!"

"He wants ye ter marry him so he locked ya in a dungeon?" Hoggle asked in confusion.

"That is not the proper way to court a young lady at all!" Didymus snapped.

"Sar-wah back!" Ludo exclaimed.

"Well, there's a lot more to it than that really. You see he brought me back about the same time you guys were put down here," she admitted, her voice full of guilt and sadness. "I am so sorry I didn't find out before this you guys, I would have tried to get you all out of here or something, I swear I thought you were all safe somewhere."

"But if he meant to marry ya why did that rat put ye down here now?" Hoggle asked.

Sarah let out a sigh of self-pity. "Actually, I'm already married to him-"

"Why, my lady, we didn't even receive an invitation!"

"We've been in this cell ya moron! We couldn' have gone even if we did have an invitation."

"You guys, I didn't want to marry him!" Sarah interrupted them, her voice sounding on the verge of tears again. "After he kidnapped me he tricked me into that too, making me sign a paper without letting me know what it was."

"Ye shouldn' sign things without reading 'em."

"I know!" Sarah shouted, her frustration washing out of her and breaking upon her friends like a wave against the rocks. Sarah cupped her hand over her own mouth as more tears fell from her eyes, ashamed at herself for yelling at them like they had done anything wrong.

"I-I'm sorry, Hoggle. I didn't mean to yell at you. I'm just… it's been the hardest two weeks of my entire life."

There was a pause, and when Hoggle responded his voice was a lot softer as he spoke. "It's okay, Sarah. The important thing is that yer here now, and we're still here for ya."

Sarah was about to respond when the sound of approaching boots echoed down the hall. She rolled back over onto her hands and knees in a crouched down position and listened. Her fear spiked as she waited for the inevitable. She knew already who it was. Jareth was on his way here, just as he had said he would be. She wasn't sure what was going to happen, but as a dim light flickered on the walls of the dungeon and eventually started to reach her oubliette she was sure of at least one thing. No matter what happened, it would mean nothing good for her.

Her friends made no further noise either as the footfalls grew louder and louder as he approached. And as the torchlight offered her more ability to see the less hidden she felt, causing her to quietly shift over against the side of the oubliette so at least he wouldn't be right over her. His feet hit the lid of her oubliette and her heart fluttered with fear and anxiety in her chest as she stayed staring at the dirt wall next to her, afraid to even look up through the holes of the grate.

She didn't know what she would do if she looked up and saw that Mavid was with him, or perhaps if he had a weapon in his hand. She could only think of and assume the worst.

Despite her fear, when he remained still upon her cell and the light didn't waver in the least, she turned her head around to look up. For all the good it did her, all she saw was the light of the torch. She tensed again when Jareth's weight shifted above her and he moved off her oubliette, the sound of keys clinking together sounding even more frightening than his boots had. Even if it was her imprisonment, the heavy grating over her head had still made her feel protected as it acted as a barrier between her and Jareth, but now he was removing that barrier and she would be able to do nothing to replace it.

The lid flew up and away from her, allowing the full light of the torch to find her and Sarah flinched as she looked up to Jareth. He looked impossibly menacing as he sneered down at her, his mismatched eyes intense. He was dressed in his black armor, same as he had been last night, and it clung to his skin in a way that reminded Sarah of insect shells. The only skin that showed was that of his face, even his neck was covered by the black lacquer plating. His hair looked just as wild as ever, possibly even more so and his teeth gleamed sharply in the torchlight as he knelt on the lip of her hole, staring down at her in a way that made her feel like a rabbit that had just been cornered by a wolf. She saw no weapons in his hands, but that gave her little comfort as she stared back at him.

His voice was deep and mocking when he spoke, "It's morning, love. You do know what that means." Sarah flinched but had nowhere to run when he reached down into the oubliette, seizing her arm and using it to drag her out forcibly, her legs screaming in protest at suddenly being forced to stretch out. "That means it's time for you and me to have a nice long chat about what you did last night."

Sarah kept her eyes on the torch, scared that if she fought that he might use it to burn her alive or something. If he meant to kill her she wished that he would just do it rather than dragging it out like this.

"If thou harms one hair on my lady's head," Sir Didymus cried out from a door Sarah could now see just a few steps further into the dungeon, his voice filtering out from a hole with bars across it that was far too high up for him to ever be able to reach, "I vow to use your royal guts for those weights one places on the corners of picnic blankets to keep it from blowing away and thus ruining everyone's meal!"

Even Jareth paused at that.

"Sir Didymus, please don't say anything else!" Sarah hissed at the door, fearing the worst if he had already done enough to truly catch Jareth's attention.

"He's right though, Sarah," Hoggle yelled back, "Don't ya lay a hand on her, ya rat bastard!"

"Sar-wah friend!"

Sarah looked to Jareth, searching his expression, which wasn't angry like she had feared, but instead looked somewhere between bored and annoyed. "Well now, it seems **your** loyal subjects are revolting, Sarah," he informed her with mock concern. "But then, they always have been rather revolting to begin with."

His nails dug painfully into her arm as he led her down the hall of the dungeon. Sarah had no idea where he was taking her, but she didn't put up much fight as he ushered her along at a brisk pace. Jareth neither spoke to nor even glanced in her direction for some time. His hand continued to squeeze her arm painfully as he put up the torch and the cell keys. Even though it was surely pointless, Sarah still made a mental note about them out of habit just in case later she might need them.

Jareth led her out of the dungeons and Sarah followed because she had no choice. "Where are we-"

"Be silent," Jareth snapped at her right away, his tone leaving no room for argument. As another shiver shot through Sarah with her rising fear, he led her down a few unfamiliar halls and to a door that didn't particularly look menacing, made of a simple reddish-hued wood with a gold pull ring serving as a handle, but if that's where Jareth wanted to take her for their 'long talk' she clearly didn't want to go there.

She pulled back on his hold just once in hesitation, but that was still enough for Jareth's hand to clamp down on her till it felt like her bone would snap under his strength and she had to bite down on her lip to keep from crying out, and even then, a whimper still managed to escape her. Jareth opened the door and Sarah was very surprised to see that inside was just a large space closed in by round walls. The more surprising thing though, was that the floor was completely covered with a thick layer of sand.

Jareth pushed her in and closed the door behind them. He shoved Sarah roughly away from him and she lost her footing on the sand, falling but suffering no pain for it per say. Jareth locked the door behind them.

Sarah looked over and could see that against a side wall was a much larger door that was currently closed, but she had no clue what it was used for. It wasn't until she looked back at Jareth that her eyes found the wall next to the entrance, where there was a wall that things like body pads and horse bridles and harnesses hung from, but other things like different sorts of whips and a bunch of different and sharp looking metal objects were located there as well. Below the wall, some saddles were laid out as well.

 _This must be some sort of horse training room_ , Sarah decided, _but why would he bring me here of all places_? Sarah pulled herself back to her feet, moving further away from both Jareth and the door when he stepped further into the room.

Jareth's eyes were cold as they raked over her. "You look awful," he sneered, "Like some dirt-poor peasant."

Sarah's pride couldn't help but be hurt by his cutting remark and she looked down at herself, seeing that he was right. The leggings that she had taken from his closet last night were torn in places and dirty everywhere else, and the jacket that she had taken was back in the pit. All she had to cover her top was a now-grubby yellow tank top. She could only imagine what her hair and makeup looked like after last night.

"You will continue to look like a dirt-poor peasant for the rest of your life if you test me any further Sarah, is that understood?" his voice was so full of threat that it was hard to even listen to without shuddering, but she still managed well enough.

"So then… you're not planning to kill me?" she finally forced herself to ask.

Jareth's cold gaze flicked up to her face and she almost wished she had kept her mouth shut. Those mismatched eyes of his were almost too much to look at. He didn't answer her though, instead turning away from her and going over to the wall. Sarah found herself frozen to her spot as she watched him consider the various objects on the wall, and a cold chill shot through her when he reached out and brought down the small cat-o-nine-tails.

Each of the nine little whips had a knot tied at the end of it and the handle was short and just as black and smooth as Jareth's armor. When he turned back to her his face was a careful mask, but nonetheless, she could see the anger in his eyes when he looked at her and she finally found herself able to move away till she was against the wall at the opposite side of the room from him. The distance didn't necessarily make her feel safer though, it would be only a matter of time if he really wanted to catch her, and she had nowhere to run to even if he had left the door unlocked.

"Kill you? I'm not going to kill you, Sarah," he stated matter-of-factly, "I am merely going to humble you. And I think by the time I am through you will see things my way at last."

Sarah couldn't help but feel very relieved that he wouldn't kill her, or at least that he said he wouldn't, but that relief didn't last long at all when he moved closer to her, the little whips swaying from side to side when he walked.

"I hope you realize now just what your situation is, Precious," he sneered, "Tell me, if I were to step aside right now and tell you that you had to leave this castle for what you did where would you go?"

Sarah looked over at the door they had just come in from. Honestly, though she had no clue. She wanted to say that he wasn't being fair, expecting her to come up with an answer when she was so emotionally strung out and tired that it was by no small miracle that she was even standing up now, let alone how difficult thinking was. But she knew that that wasn't really an excuse in this case.

"I'm waiting for an answer, Sarah," Jareth growled out, pulling at the cords of the whip with his free hand.

"The Crying Caves," she blurted out before she could even think of how stupid it was for her to do so. She had belatedly remembered that that was where the worm had said they were going, that there were women there willing to help her. If she had gotten out again, maybe they would still be willing.

Jareth almost looked amused at that. "Really? Is that the only place you can go? Truly I'm sure that is the only place outside my Labyrinth that you have even heard of. Correct?" This time he didn't wait for an answer, but he was right nonetheless. Sarah flinched despite herself when he smacked the whips against his armored outer thigh, showing no signs of ever feeling the contact. "I'm very sorry to be the one to have to break this to you my dear, but I'm afraid that last night the Underground Women all met with a very abrupt and tragic end. You would be venturing into nothing but an open grave if that is where you chose to go."

Sarah couldn't help but openly shudder then. "Y-you killed t-them?!"

Jareth cut in almost before the guilt could fully wash into her. "Don't you dare cry for them, Sarah!" he commanded firmly, his anger plain on his face and in the way he held himself. "Don't you dare shed one tear for those who would have slaughtered you first chance. If you knew the whole story you would be down on your knees before me now, thanking me for stopping you from escaping."

Sarah could barely keep up with what he was saying and her head spun as she tried. "Th-thanking you?" she managed to get out, her disbelief evident in her tone.

"Yes, thanking me," Jareth spat back. He turned on his heel and paced a couple steps slowly first to the right of her than the left like he had done in the ruined Escher room, but this time there was so much more anger in him. "Once again I have done everything for you and you appreciate none of it! Do you know what would have happened to you if you had made it to the Crying Caves last night? The Underground Women never planned to help you. They planned to kill you. Carrie cost them dearly when they had helped her to escape, something they did only because she carried my child in her at the time, and they were still very bitter about it. They said they would help because they wanted to punish her and I both, and they would use you to do so."

By the time her thoughts could keep up with all what Jareth had just said Sarah's heart was pounding in her head and she found herself leaning back against the wall more for support than anything else. "You're lying," she accused him against the sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach.

Jareth's eyes flashed dangerously and he advanced on her then. Sarah's fear kicked up to a new level and she tried to regain her footing enough to run, crying out in fear when Jareth seized her arm and swung her over in a way that caused her to trip and fall onto her side in the sand, his hand never letting go of her elbow as he brought the whip down sharply on her now exposed backside. Sarah shrieked at the pain of it. "I do not lie, do not accuse me of such again," he ordered, his eyes still flashing as he glared down at her.

Sarah's entire backside burned unmercifully, feeling like he had hit her with fire rather than a whip. It was so much worse than the crop had been when last he used it. She wasn't sure if it was because of the knots tied to the end, the fact that it was like being whipped nine times all at once, or because he had put some force behind it. All she knew what that it hurt terribly and she didn't want him to use it on her again. Sarah looked down at the sand rather than at those eyes of his and tried hard not to cry out any more than she already had.

Apparently, that wasn't enough though. "Apologize to me right now," Jareth ordered.

Sarah's pride burned at the thought of apologizing to him for anything at all after he had whipped her, but when he brought the whip up again she quickly thought better of it. "I'm sorry!" she cried out so quickly it almost didn't even sound like she was speaking English when she said it.

Jareth didn't bring the whip down, but he didn't swing it either, his other hand tightening on her arm when she tried to pull away. His voice was very calm and serious when he spoke again. "I do not lie, Sarah. They plotted to slay you and keep my son as a prisoner. You would have walked right into their trap."

Sarah's mouth had gone dry and her throat felt tight. They wouldn't have…

Surely, he was-

The worm wouldn't have allowed-

Her throat seemed to completely close for a moment and she couldn't breathe in to save her life, causing her heart to beat faster as she automatically panicked and Sarah started gasping for breath. Jareth could see she was having an attack and let go of her arm so that she could roll onto her stomach, struggling to get enough air into her lungs as her mind seemed to fly everywhere at once. She was vaguely aware of Jareth's hand on her back, grounding her. It was his voice that cut through the panic and gave her something to focus on though. "Breathe, Sarah. You're not going to die. The Underground Women can never hurt you nor my son ever again. You're safe from them."

She just couldn't believe it, she would have walked blindly into her own death. And if she had taken Toby with her… oh God!

"You must calm yourself, Sarah," Jareth coaxed. "Breathe."

Sarah tried to do as he said this time, focusing on her breathing to try to calm down. She managed to get in a shaky breath and then focused very hard on doing so again. Jareth said nothing more for a few minutes, his hand still resting against her back as she finally got her breathing under control and came out of her small panic attack. Her emotions were boiling over on her now though and now instead of panicking, she was left with tears rolling down her face in large wet drops, falling to the sand beneath her and darkening it.

Once she was at least calm again, Jareth continued. "You needn't be so dramatic, Sarah. You were never really in danger of walking into their trap. If I hadn't known in advance about your little plans you would have never even made it out of this room last night."

Sarah's confusion at what he was saying helped cut through her sorrow and she sniffed back her tears, eventually looking back over her shoulder at him for an explanation. The mask was back on his face as he met her gaze. "W-what?"

Jareth raised one condescending brow at her then. "You didn't really think you got out of here all on your own last night? Clearly, you have no idea just how many obstacles I had to move out of your way for your scheme to work at all. I spent the better part of the day making sure you could escape."

Sarah was completely lost for words and could only listen as he continued.

"I can hardly remember all the things I had to do, but let's see, shall we?" Jareth asked in a mockingly flippant tone as he made a show of tapping his chin like he was trying to remember, "First I had to make sure that your lessons were located near the kitchens. Rally had planned to teach you in a room halfway across the castle. So, you're welcome for that," he bit out, "Then, of course, I ordered the kitchen knocker to let you in. He would never have on his own by the way. I can scarcely imagine what you would have done then… so you're welcome for that as well. I suppose you should also thank me for making sure the brownies weren't around long enough that you could use the poison, then for not throwing it out after you had stuck your hand in the sauce, glad to see you're ok by the way," he sneered.

Sarah didn't want to hear anymore, "Stop it!" she hissed.

"You will listen!" Jareth shouted back, causing her to flinch once more before continuing. "Then, of course, there is the matter of locked doors. Every night that we have spent together I have locked the door to my room before bunking down, I'm surprised you never even noticed that I didn't do so last night, but then I'm sure your mind was elsewhere. Goodness, what would you have done if you had gone to leave only to find the door locked? Toby's door is also locked every night by the way, but not last night. And as a bonus, the door to the garden is locked down tight every night as well, the same as every entrance and exit to my castle." He paused and tapped his chin again, but his eyes were still focused sharply on her. "My, my, it seems you have even more to thank me for than you ever could have known. Unless of course, you already had planned a way to get past such barriers, in which case I would love to know how, " he concluded in a mockingly interested voice.

Ishapell really must have heard everything, and apparently, she hadn't been stingy on the details. Sarah's head spun with this new information. Not only had he known the entire time, but he had been setting her up to ultimately fail. But she couldn't see why he would do such a thing unless he was just that hell-bent on being able to laugh at her.

"Why would you do that?" Sarah gasped, her earlier anxiety at least put on the back burner if not forgotten as she twisted back over to her side, his hand falling from her back to return to his own side.

Jareth shrugged then. "I wanted to know what you would do. And besides, I wasn't going to easily pass up an opportunity to finally confront that simple-minded worm."

"You tried to kill him," Sarah scowled before she could even think about her actions.

Jareth didn't seem angry though as he shrugged again. "He tried to run. He wouldn't be able to run if he was dead."

"He didn't try, he succeeded," Sarah sniffed as she turned her head away from him.

Jareth reached out then and firmly gripped her chin in his hand, forcing her to look back at him as anger flashed in his eyes once more. "Don't you jerk your chin at me, little girl," he warned in a very low voice.

This time Sarah wisely kept her mouth shut. After a few moments, Jareth released her chin. This time she didn't turn away.

Jareth seemed to pull back on some of his anger in response to this. Her eyes darted to the cat-o-nine-tails sitting on the sand next to him and he noticed as much because he turned to look at it, his hand reaching out to stroke the handle like it was a forgotten lover or something. "You needn't be so afraid, Sarah. I am not nearly so angry with you for trying to run away as I once was. This is merely… in case you continue to upset me further." He turned back to her and although he claimed to no longer be angry, his eyes still told her that now wasn't the time to test him on such a promise.

"Truthfully, I am pleased by the outcomes of you trying to escape."

Sarah frowned at that. "What outcomes?" she asked hesitantly, almost afraid of the answer she would get.

"Well, for one thing, I no longer have to worry about the Underground Women presenting me with any problems," he smiled coldly, sending chills racing through Sarah.

She would have found that answer disturbing enough, but he continued. "Then, of course, there are the smaller matters such as knowing that my castle is, in fact, secure from the inside out unless I make it otherwise and knowing that my subjects here are loyal to me, as they should be. Not to mention the fact that this entire situation has allowed you to get this whole escaping idea out of your head."

A look of doubt slipped over Sarah's face before she could stop it and she braced herself for Jareth's wrath. It didn't come though and Jareth simply chuckled.

"Now don't argue with me, sweet thing. Of course, you have no reason to try running away anymore. After all, now you can tell yourself that you honestly tried everything you could and should be able to accept your destiny just as you should have in the beginning. There is no running from our fates, Sarah, and yours is crossed with mine. Not to mention the fact that this was your best chance and it failed dismally before you could even set it up."

Sarah's anger was boiling up again as he continued to critique her escape and try to tell her how pointless everything she had done was. He was insufferable with how he gloated and held it over her head. She shifted around to get up and when he gave her more room rather than going for the whip, she took the opportunity to get back to her feet and put some more space between them. She couldn't leave the room as it was locked, but she was having just about her fill of Jareth's arrogance and overconfidence.

He continued to sit on the sand rather than following her, leaning back on his arms in a relaxed manner. "Not to mention the fact that if you ever did make it back to your world you would have no place to return to."

Sarah stopped in her tracks at that and looked back over her shoulder at him. The bastard was so relaxed looking that you could have thought he was sunning at the beach rather than in fully body armor in this awful room full of sand. "What does that mean?"

Jareth's lips curled up into an evil smirk but he said nothing.

Sarah turned to give him her full attention then. He was probably just saying things to mess with her, to make her think all was lost, but there was also this terrible feeling forming in her stomach that maybe he wasn't. "If you did something to my father…" she warned him, not caring if her threats did make him angry with her or not.

Jareth chuckled at that. "Not your father anymore."

"What are you talking about?!" Sarah demanded, tired of his game as her heart continued to hammer in her chest. At this rate, she would have a heart attack by the time she was twenty.

Jareth summoned up a crystal and turned it over in his hands expertly, making it go this way and that over his palm and wrist. "You see Sarah, while you thought the Underground Women would agree to help you back to your world, they had actually made up their minds to send something else there in your stead."

He tossed her the crystal and it fell to the sand in front of her feet. She didn't want to touch it, afraid of what would happen, but instead, she knelt for a better look when she saw an image move inside of it. She considered the crystal… she could see her face reflected in it, but suddenly the face turned and Sarah could see that it wasn't actually her reflection she was looking at but a girl who looked like her… a lot like her… like a clone.

Her clone was being walked into the front door of her house, looking just as tired and worn out as the man that walked with her. Sarah almost didn't recognize him for the grown in facial hair and the scruff on his head, but there was no doubt that that was her daddy! "W-what is this?!"

"It is a changeling, Sarah, or a doppelganger if you will. The Underground Women love children, but all they can make on their own are these horrific creatures with the ability of glamour. They use these offspring to switch out with human children. This time they intended to switch it out for you and my son. Apparently, Carrie killed the second shifter, but yours survived. It's just like you in every way… on the surface."

Sarah could only watch in horror as inside the crystal her father led her counterfeit into her home. Her chest hurt and the pain was just building as her father leaned over and placed a kiss against that thing wearing her face's head.

"NO!" Sarah screamed, slapping her hands down on either side of the crystal, causing the sand around them to jump. "That's not me! That's not me, Daddy!" she screamed, knowing deep down that would do nothing, but having no better ideas of what she should do. As they closed the door behind them she looked back up at Jareth, tears already stinging her eyes at the hopelessness of her situation. "He thinks it's me!" she wailed.

"Of course, he does. Why would he have any reason to believe otherwise?"

"IT'S NOT ME!" Sarah screamed again, slapping the crystal and some of the sand it was on away from herself. The crystal rolled halfway across the room before it stopped, but her own sadness and anger continued to build as she held herself for lack of a better alternative. "Why wouldn't Karen tell him it's not me?!" she wailed, not caring in the least about the spectacle she was making or how Jareth may take her actions.

Jareth's face and tone were as emotionless as stone when he answered. "Because she's dead. I don't know how exactly, but I assure you that Carrie… Karen as you knew her… is dead."

Sarah just about choked on her own gasp, feeling like the last of the floor just slipped out from under her or something. She felt like she was going to drown in all her tears but she just couldn't stop. She had nothing to hope for now. There was no one who was going to help her, going to come save her. Her stomach clenched up tight from the emptiness her despair filled it with and she couldn't help but wonder for a moment if she would end up making herself sick from crying so much.

Jareth got up from his spot on the sand and slowly made his way over to her. Once he seemed sure that she would not strike out at him or anything he knelt behind her again, running his hands comfortingly through her hair. "Don't be so upset, precious. Truly it's not as bad as you think it is. Your father thinks that he has you back safe at home. Isn't that better than him living the rest of his life not knowing where you are or if you are alright? You couldn't return to him anyway, but the changeling could go to him. Her being there will ease his pain. He can be happy again. Isn't that nice?"

His words slowly wore off the edges of Sarah's outrage, like waves on the stones. She loved her father dearly, she wanted him to be happy of course. But still, that wasn't her! She should be the one at home with him, not trapped in this castle for the rest of her life. How could she go back there with that changeling around though? Her father was a very practical man who never believed in things like magic and mystic beings. How could she ever hope for him to understand the situation? He'd end up in the loony bin before he would understand a story about magic. And with Carrie dead, he was all alone… And he was happy…

Sarah could ignore the tears no longer as all her frustrations and sadness and loss came spilling out in violent sobs that filled the training room. She cried so hard that it was only mere seconds before her throat was raw and her stomach rolled like she would be sick if she didn't calm down fast. She ran out of air just after that and although her body still tried to cry no more sound came from her mouth as she struggled to calm enough for air lest she either pass out or throw up. She had to calm down, her brain was screaming at her to, but she didn't want to calm down. She wanted to keep crying just as hard and as loudly as she possibly could for as long as she could. She wanted it all out. She was sick of feeling on the verge of tears all the time. She wanted to cry until her body was so empty of tears that she would never have to cry again.

Jareth held her as she did so, and for a while she ignored him, but eventually, she lost even that fight as her body ached to be held as she wept. Jareth pulled her more snuggly into his arms and whispered soft things to her as she cried hysterically.

He was right, he was right about it all damn it! She had nowhere to go if she ever did leave this world. How could she go home now?! He life had first been stolen from her by Jareth, but now that changeling had stolen her only hope of ever returning to it. It had been so hard for her to escape the first time, and it turned out that Jareth knew and had been using it to his advantage the whole time! Jareth was cruel to her. Every time she found a friend they ended up betraying her. Her only real friends were in the dungeons for helping her. She had nothing here!

At this realization, anger crept up on her again on her emotional roller coaster from hell and she wanted to scream at the sheer injustice of it. It wasn't just unfair this time, there was no word or phrase she could think of to just how much she didn't deserve any of this. Maybe she hadn't been a straight A student who could do no wrong and who all the guys fell over and all the girls wanted to be like, but it had always seemed to her like those were the ones that ended up on the news all the time for dying from drugs or something else illegal. She was just another girl, one of a million who went to school and tried to get passing grades, kept just a few friends, and would occasionally fight with her family. She had been living a normal life.

Then Jareth had come along and changed it all, throwing her into a world she did not know and forcing her into a place that her personal puzzle piece just didn't belong. And she had worked so hard to fit into that spot long enough so that she could get away. She had been walking on egg shells and cow-towing to Jareth's backward thinking… all for nothing.

Well, Jareth had overlooked an outcome of her failed escape as far as she was concerned. He had overlooked the fact that now that she had nothing, she would have no reason to put up with his cruelty and ideals! When she thought of all the times she had kept her mouth shut… all the times she had allowed him to make her do something that she didn't want to… and she had done it all with a smile bolted to her face!

Sarah may have welcomed his comfort moments ago, but with her rage coursing through her like this she wanted nothing to do with him. She pushed away from him and since he wasn't expecting it she did manage to get his arms to release her momentarily, but before she could remove herself from his lap his hands re-caught her and he tried to pull her back to him.

"Let go of me right now!" Sarah growled out, twisting around as she attempted to throw his hands from her arms. When his grip slipped on one arm he simply wrapped his arm around her back to pull her closer, making it so she could do even less to struggle against him. Sarah screamed then in response to the anger that surged through her at him refusing to let go of her and she continued to pull away despite the look of anger on his face. She didn't care anymore though. He could go get the cat-o-nine-tails for all she cared. She just couldn't stand to do whatever he wanted and play the part of his own personal doll any longer!

"Sarah, stop it," Jareth ordered as she continued to fight him.

She didn't listen, of course, screaming again when he tilted forward so that she fell back against the sand and he was on her in an instant, using his weight as well as his strength to pin her down, trapping her right arm beneath her own body in the process. No matter how hard Sarah tried, she couldn't pull her trapped arm free from beneath her and Jareth's combined weight. She pushed against his shoulder instead with her one free hand. Jareth grabbed it though and forced that back against the sand by her head. "Sarah, stop this right now!" he growled, his eyes full of his own anger.

She met his glare full on with one of her own, " _Or what_?!" she hissed. "You'll lock me back in the dungeon? Make me some sort of slave? Beat me? Take away my life? YOU'VE ALREADY DONE ALL THAT!" she screamed. This time tears of anger were falling back from her eyes, falling fat and hot back from the corners of her eyes. "Go ahead, Jareth! Do it! I don't care! I don't care! I don't care!" she wailed, squirming around beneath him as she attempted again to free her arms. "You have no power over me anymore! You've taken away everything I cared about."

Jareth continued to hold her down, but at her words, the anger on his face seemed to change over into something else. He looked down at her with something akin to astonishment. His mouth even gaped open a little bit for a moment before he closed it again. "How can you be so foolish to even begin to think that for even a moment? Taken everything from you? I think not. I have tried to give you so much, your dreams as a matter of fact, and you have done nothing but throw it back in my face every time. You've done more than enough to try even my patience."

He shifted more weight against her torso so that he could keep her from squirming. "Get off me!" Sarah growled again, turning her head away rather than looking him in the eye. He used his free hand to grip her chin once more and made her face him.

"You will listen to me this time! What do you think, that I just pulled you into my Labyrinth for no reason? The ugly truth of that matter, Precious, is that I never intended to have you run my Labyrinth at all. You asked for that chance. You wanted to come here! Maybe it was to win back my son, but just the same you asked that the child be taken and I took him. You asked that I let you come here and run my Labyrinth and I let you. As a reward for your win, I gave you your dreams, as promised in the beginning. How many times did you dream of being in the book I had left you, to be part of the story? Or all the times you had longed for someone to simply show up one day and fall in love with you? Every little girl wishes to be a princess, and you were no exception to the rule.

"I didn't steal you away, you wanted to come here. Maybe you didn't wish for this specifically, but who's fault is that? Everything else you wished for at one point or another in your life. I granted it to you."

Sarah was shaken by his lunatic views, trying hard to come up with counter arguments but she could do little more than shake her head as he continued. "And as for you not caring if you became a slave or not, I can guarantee you that no matter how miserable you think your life will be as my queen, it will be tenfold so if you force me to make you my servant instead. You would become like Torik, Sarah. Just like him, you would become my pet, able to do absolutely nothing and go nowhere without permission. You wouldn't be allowed to ask me for anything but could only accept whatever I feel generous enough to give you. You would do demeaning chores for me during the day and at night you would serve as nothing more than a body for my use, having no say whatsoever in how I take pleasure from you. And you will not be allowed to interact with my son at all, but rather sit quietly and watch as I take a wife and allow her to help me in raising my children instead."

Jareth licked his lips as though they had gone dry from talking so much. Sarah could see from the look on his face that such a future didn't appeal to him any more than it did to her and she couldn't even bring herself to thinking of living such a life. Surely that wasn't what it was really like for Torik? But now that she thought of it… she really had no reason to believe it was any other way for him. And it would be worse for her, at least he and Ishapell seemed to really care for each other. She found it hard to even like Jareth, much less care about him. And Toby… to be so close and yet have no part in his life…

Jareth's hand on her chin let go and moved to stroke her cheek in an act of tenderness. "You accuse me of taking everything from you, Sarah. You couldn't be more wrong. I can give you so much more if you'd allow me. I want to give you more. If you would only allow me to do so I would give you love, a family, a purpose, and everything you could ever want as well as everything you'll ever need. You picked a terrible time to cause this whole mess, Sarah, but it can all still work. You can still be the queen I know you can be, and the wife and mother that you should be."

She found herself unable to move enough to do little else than blink as he brought his lips down to hers in a faint touch. She didn't even close her eyes at the contact she was so stunned as his words raced around her head. Jareth drew back and the anger she had seen before was gone. His hand which had pinned hers down no longer did because it wasn't necessary, her hand was a dead weight against the sand as his gloved fingers stroked over her palm. "You still have Toby, Sarah, and he still needs you just as much as I do. Make no mistake though, the main reason I am still willing to make you my wife is because I know how much you love him, as you demonstrated last night when you left him behind. I can think of no woman in this world or the next who could make a better mother for him."

Sarah didn't know what to do, what to say. What could she say? How could she argue? Her head swam and she felt lost amongst the currents, looking for her lifesaver and finding none.

Jareth saw her uncertainty and placed a tender kiss against her jaw. "I made you an offer once that you called unfair, but I think now you can understand just how wrong you were about that. I offer you this last time, the choice to be my wife. I refuse to go on with the rest of my life like we have for the last two weeks. This time I want you to choose, and know that it is indeed what you have chosen and not what I have forced upon you. If you agree to be my wife then I will expect you to make an effort in being so. Don't agree to be so and then change your mind the second I ask something of you that you may not like. I will ask you once and only once, and I want a straight answer. Are you ready?"

Ready? Sarah was having trouble thinking straight, just trying to keep up with everything he was saying, let alone understanding it. She was sleep and food deprived, and so emotionally drained she could hardly think at all. She wanted to close her eyes and keep them closed for at least the next five days.

Jareth didn't wait though, and his face was dead serious as he spoke. "Sarah, will you agree to be my wife, rather than fighting me on it?"

Sarah tried to get her thoughts to focus. Should she say yes? Could she? But then how could she say no? It was the exact same choice as before when she had first arrived. Either way, Jareth would have his way, she would be his wife. If she fought him on it God only knew what hardships awaited her yet. If she agreed things could be easier for her, but how could she agree to be his wife? Her mind flashed to Toby and her heart swelled. How could she refuse to be his mother when he had none? Besides, he was all she had left.

"Time's up, Sarah," Jareth drawled. "I will have my answer now or I will walk out of this room and leave you in here for a month!"

Her stomach leaped at her fear. "I- y-yes!" she stammered out.

Jareth frowned at that. "Is it yes then? That you agree to be my wife?"

Sarah couldn't say it again, so instead, she nodded her head weakly, feeling her heart fall to her gut as she did so. She still had Toby, that was the only thing in this world she had. All that mattered was that she kept him. Jareth would never harm his child, but he had managed to find other ways of using him as leverage against her. And she honestly didn't want to spend the rest of her life being treated as a prisoner. "Y-yes," she managed to get out, feeling like her mind was completely shutting down and she was sure she was falling into shock.

Jareth's eyes were intense like he hadn't expected her to ever agree and was afraid now that she would take it back. He brought his head down to her again, "Then kiss me, precious, kiss me like a wife should kiss her husband."

Sarah's free hand seemed to move of its own accord as it came up to trace the line of Jareth's strong jaw, the curve of his high cheekbone, going higher to touch the soft tresses of his silken hair. It felt like she was in a daze as she brought her head up the slight distance and pushed her lips against his in a soft touch at first, turning sweet as she moved her lips against his, brushing and sucking softly against his own till he responded, moving his lips against her as well. Both his hands came up to cup her head and he angled them so that he could deepen the kiss, making her open for him and he tasted her as if he were a starved man, his tongue stroking her just as softly and sweetly as his lips had and she tried to make her own tongue do the same. It was honestly a very good kiss, despite the circumstances.

Jareth pulled back from her slightly, a satisfied smirk on his face. She turned her head away, her mind both spinning and still as she laid there, the feel of him still pressed against her lips.

X

[On a side note, tomorrow (the 19th) is my 22nd birthday so this is kind of my gift to myself to get this chapter posted now : ) ]

[[Above note was posted with origional story. Just a few days ago I turned 28, just to give a time frame reference of how old this chapter is at least. ]]


	26. Chapter 26

_Beta by The Art of Suicide_

 _X_

Sarah watched the moon outside her little window in her room, an eerie grey color against the black of night. All around her were things that were hers, but for all the attention she paid them you would think she had never seen them before. Everything from her favorite childhood books to her stuffed animals, to her modest makeup stand… even her bear Lancelot just sat around her in the room she had grown up in, utterly unimportant to her. Her room, which she had grown up in all her life, was also unimportant to her. She had learned this lesson once before, that what mattered was her family and the ones she truly loved. But right now, her family was out of the house. She wasn't sure where they had gone, but somehow, she just knew that they were out at the store or picking Toby up from daycare or ordering takeout for dinner. Something mundane like that.

The sound of her door opening behind her had her eyes going wide and her heart leapt at the idea that they were home at last!

Sarah turned around to greet whoever it was, be it her daddy or Karen or Toby. So, when she turned around to see herself looking back at her, she was stunned, to say the least. It wasn't possible, but sure enough, she wasn't mistaken. The girl that stood in the doorway looked just like her, from her long brown hair to her… were those her panda slippers on that girl's feet?!

"What are you doing in my room?" the other Sarah asked, a scowl already on her face.

"This is my r-room," Sarah rebutted, noticing when uncertainty caused her voice to waver. But this was her room, wasn't it? But if so then who was the other girl that looked just like her?

"Oh yeah, and I suppose that's your father that will be coming back from the store at any minute, is it? Leave, get out of my room right now!" the other Sarah shouted, using the same whine in her tone as she did so that Sarah herself had used so often once upon a time.

"This is my room!" Sarah shouted back.

The other Sarah glared hard at her, her eyes no longer green, but the color of melted gold with only small black pupils for eyes. The strange girl came at her, faster than she could see because one moment the other Sarah was against the wall, and the next she was right there in front of her, mere inches from Sarah's face. But the girl didn't look like her any longer. She looked nothing close to human, her eyes pools of gold and her hair nothing more than a few thin black strands barely held on her head by the thin membrane that barely passed for skin. Her face was more pointed than a humans would be and her mouth was much larger and full of sharp teeth.

"GET OUT!"

X

Sarah awoke with a start, sitting up and looking around for what had scared her so. She was in her room though, not her childhood room, but the one that Jareth had given her. There was no moon here to speak of, but outside her window, the sky was just starting to turn from grey to a light yellow as the day approached. She was alone in her room, nothing was here to hurt her.

She had dreamed… she remembered that much, but not what she had dreamed about per se. Even now as she placed her hand on her chest she could feel her heart fluttering through her nightgown. What had scared her so much?

Sarah leaned back against her covers trying to remember, but the harder she tried the further back into the recesses of her mind it seemed to slip till she knew there was just no getting it back.

She could remember last night though, those memories seemed to plague her. She remembered how Jareth had pinned to her the floor with his body, explaining to her that she had nowhere to run to now, that she needed to be a proper mother and wife if she didn't want to live in a severe form of slavery for the rest of her life. She remembered being tired and hungry and emotionally unstable, but most of all she remembered how it had bit at her pride to know that he was right about her running away, how it had hacked at her ego to hear how easily he had outmaneuvered her, and how it had burned her tongue to agree to stop fighting him so fiercely on the matters.

Her pride had taken a far worse beating than her flesh ever could of and would likely take even longer to fully heal.

Now that she was rested though, she still knew that the truth of his words last night, although still painful, were indeed no less than the truth. She was stuck here. That much was certain. She couldn't go back home, not without sending her father into insanity now that he had finally received some happiness. She wouldn't even be able to stay in the town she grew up in, the only one she had ever really known for the chance of running into her father and the same problem happening. It wasn't fair. There was something else living her life as though it always had. That was just the way it was and no matter how her heart ached at the thought, she could think of nothing she could do about it. She was only seventeen, too young to be on her own in Aboveground, especially when she knew nothing about being on her own. She would be on her own in a world that was just as unfamiliar to her as this one with no friends nor family nor job skills nor a cent to her name. It wasn't an option.

And if she ran away down here… same thing.

She couldn't even take her own life.

She had never had even passing thoughts of killing herself in her whole life and never understood how some could think that life wasn't worth living. No matter what religion or creed or place someone came from, the idea that life is a gift was universal as far as she knew. In her family, she had been raised to believe that no matter how bad things got, there would always be some joys in your future. Back Aboveground, her friend Mandy once became a Buddhist for a couple months, and while she had been heavy into it she had told Sarah once that life was suffering, and so we live for the small joys whenever and where ever we can find them.

Here in the castle, she might be stuck with Jareth, but she was also with Toby, and that did count for a great deal. He was her family as far as she was concerned, no matter what his relation or blood was to her that much hung just as true as ever. If she left him, leaving him to Jareth alone to raise… Sarah couldn't bear the thought of him growing up to be like Jareth and Mavid, another male just like them. She couldn't let that happen to him. Suppose he got older and thought it ok to force someone into being his wife? Sarah couldn't live with the thought of such a fate happening to someone else, being caused by Toby, who was still so sweet and innocent. He was at the very least one of those joys worth living for that Mandy had talked about.

Last night, after Jareth had indeed humbled her, he unlocked the door to the breaking room, helping her from the sand and bringing her back to his private bath. She tensed when he ordered her to undress, but complied at the sharp look he gave her as he poured a sweet-smelling soap into the large tub. Her body cried out to be clean again, so she ultimately complied removing the torn and dirty clothes that had once been Jareth's from herself and slipping quickly into the warm water of the bath. She hadn't realized how much sand had clung to her till she had heard it fall from her onto the tile as she had undressed, sounding like soft rain against a windowpane as the grains dropped. Still more had clung to her skin though, particularly in her hair and against her scalp and ears.

Jareth removed his own clothes then, the same noise being made as more sand made to join hers, and he climbed into the tub with her, washing the remainder from his own body as she did the same. Once she was satisfied that she had gotten all the sand from her scalp and the rest of her body and hair washed, Jareth had asked her if she was still on her period. Saying yes would have been a hard lie to swallow at this point, so she had simply shaken her head no and had braced herself like she expected him to launch himself onto her. He had not done so, however, and in fact hadn't touched her at all since he had kissed her in the breaking room. He had simply nodded his head in understanding and had handed her a towel to dry off with.

Once she had been clean and dried he had simply instructed her to go to her room and go to bed, saying she would need all the sleep she could get for tomorrow.

She hadn't complained.

Sarah hadn't spoken almost a single word to him, but she didn't have to ask to know that his mind was elsewhere at best and scattered about at worst. She thought she would fall asleep the moment she hit the pillow but instead found herself lying awake for quite some time, staring at the door connecting their rooms and wondering what Jareth was doing. It seemed like anytime he wasn't right in front of her he was up to something that would mean trouble for her, like when he had spent an entire day exploiting her plans of escape without her even suspecting it.

She heard nothing on his side of the door though, hoping that he had simply fallen asleep and nodded off herself eventually.

Sarah was still exhausted though, the little sleep she did get being interrupted by her bad dreams. She turned over with the intent of going back to sleep, only to turn back over again when her door to the hall swung open and suddenly Jareth, Ishapell, Clora, and Rally all spilled into her room, all talking over each other as they came in.

Jareth ordered Rally and Clora to start packing up what Sarah would need from her closets and told Ishapell to see to it that Sarah had something suitable to wear for the day and something was shouted belatedly at Clora to make sure to pack some purple dress for dinner tonight.

Sarah sat up in bed as Jareth made his way over to her next. After last night, she wasn't sure what to expect from him, and so tried to keep her face expressionless as he sat down on the side of her bed as the females all ran about her room and closet getting things together.

Jareth's manner was rather business-like as he addressed her. "I hope you slept well. I allowed you to sleep in a little longer this morning so you would be more alert tonight but there's no more time to waste. You need to get up and get dressed right away so that we can leave."

"Leave?" she asked, still dazed as she tried to rouse herself from sleep.

Jareth spared her an annoyed glance as he pulled the covers down from her body. "Yes, leave. My parents have agreed to hold dinner with the council at their own castle tonight. Even if I rounded up all the goblins in my kingdom and threw them into an oubliette months ago this castle would still not be free of their stench or filth. We need to hurry and get ready so we can arrive there well before dinner." He leaned back down to her and she was caught off guard when he brought his lips against hers in a hurried kiss, which was just as well because she likely would have tensed or flinched or done something else that would have made him mad if she had known it was coming.

By 'we' he had to be talking about her since he already looked fully dressed and awake for the day. The only signs that he hadn't had any more sleep lately than she was the faint darkness that lined the skin of his eyes and the way his eyelids drooped just ever so slightly so that someone who didn't see him every day might have never noticed.

Jareth did look fabulous otherwise this morning she had to admit. His hair was still just as wild looking as ever, but the longest strands at the back were pulled together in a low tail with a thin strip of black leather and he wore dark grey tight leggings, a red silken shirt that shimmered in the light and left a triangle of skin on his chest exposed almost halfway down, a black cummerbund that helped show just how flat and narrow his waist was, crushed leather gloves, and boots that encased his legs up to his knees and had a very thick two inch heel on them. He was even more ornate looking than most days.

Sarah didn't like the thought of having to go to a strange place to have dinner with Jareth's parents and even more strangers who would be judging her the whole time. She didn't have to be a fortune teller to know that it was going to be an extremely uncomfortable night. "Is Toby coming with us?" She asked as Jareth took her hand and helped her up out of bed. She didn't want to let him help her out, considered even chewing her hand off as an alternative to allowing him to take it; but wouldn't that be time-consuming.

"Yes, Mavid and the wet nurse are getting him ready now. I had Torik go to the stables to help ready our transportation. Now hurry! We are running behind as it is," he ordered.

Ishapell had already laid out Sarah's under things for the day and had a burgundy colored dress slung over one little arm. She didn't try meeting Sarah's eyes at all, quite the opposite if anything.

Jareth reclaimed her attention when he started unbuttoning the front of her nightgown.

"Sire, what are you doing?!" Rally gaped, having just come out of the closet. "You shouldn't be in here when the queen is changing!"

"We don't have time for that kind of foolishness!" Jareth barked back, his patience reaching its end as he continued to help her undress. "I've helped her undress before for better reasons than to change **back** into clothes and even if I did wish to be inappropriate right now it is not your place to tell me I can't."

Rally didn't say another word, biting her lip and going back into the closet. Clora looked thoroughly amused as she paused to watch and Ishapell's face had gone even redder than Sarah's, although she was more likely embarrassed instead of enraged like Sarah was. Jareth stripped the nightgown from her and Sarah brought her hands up to cover herself automatically when his eyes took a second to roam, trying to keep her scowl to herself. Jareth gave her another pointedly annoyed look when she did so but she pretended not to see it, turning to the bed to pick up her underwear. Ishapell stepped forward to help but Sarah snatched the underwear and corset away from the female quickly, ignoring also Ishapell's hurt look as she sat down on the bed and slipped on the underwear and placed the corset over her bust. Jareth stepped up to lace the corset, having Sarah brace herself against one of the posts at the foot of her bed. "Breathe out," was all he said before he placed his knee against her back and pulled sharply at the laces.

Sarah regretted having him do it rather than Ishapell out of spite right away, now that she was becoming more accustomed to them, she could tell that Jareth had the added strength to make the corset extra tight around her middle to where it was just a little harder than normal to breathe. She said nothing though, adjusting her breathing to it manually as Jareth took the dress from Ishapell and threw it over Sarah's head.

This dress was a tad heavier than her other ones, the material being thicker and the dress being higher necked and long sleeved. It had a more simple design to it than the others she had worn as of yet, it had a bell skirt with a built in net with a parted overskirt of the same burgundy color that was lined with black lace and the top part had little hooks running up the front to fasten it closed with a high color that was also lined with black lace that formed a narrow V down to the top of Sarah's cleavage and long sleeves that were tight from the shoulders to the elbows but from there to the wrists they fanned out for ample movement. Those too were hemmed with black lace. "Why is this one built differently?" Sarah asked as she looked down at herself.

"This one is for traveling, when we arrive at my parent's you will change into a different dress," Jareth explained as Clora and Ishapell both started combing her hair so they could put it up. Sarah fought not to roll her eyes at the thought of changing again. Separate dresses just for traveling? Ridiculous.

As her hair was pulled up on her head into a tight bun, Jareth never stopped talking to her, which she half-heartedly paid attention to but it was hard. Everything just felt so surreal, like she was still dreaming and would wake up any minute to find everything had all just been in her head. She wanted so badly for everything to just be in her head. If someone could convince her that she was just insane she would have probably thanked them. Jareth was still very formal and business mannered towards her and she couldn't help but find it odd considering how desperately he had fought her tooth and nail on making her his wife. Now that she had finally agreed to make something of an effort for Toby's sake you would think that he would have been a little more… happy about it. Not treating her like a new employee on her first day at work.

"The council will be there tonight. I'm sure I've mentioned this before at least a dozen times. Because of this fact alone this dinner will be rather formal. I don't want you to say or do anything unless you must. Remember, you don't have to wow them, just don't make any major faux-pas in front of them and they should find you acceptable enough." He let out a deep sigh as he gave her look another once over. "Allow a couple strands near the front to hang loose I think, and try to make it look accidental," he directed, a most serious look on his face. "I could kill my father for arranging all this," Jareth hissed out under his breath.

X

Jareth was happy, truly he was. Well… maybe not entirely happy, but certainly very hopeful that he would be soon. Last night he knew it had taken a lot out of Sarah for her to agree to see things his way, and although it would take time and effort, he was sure that eventually, she would come to see the benefits of her decision far outweighed the cons. There had been times last night when he had doubted that she would ever submit even the slightest bit to him, her pride and courage being a perfect match for his own, just one more reason he knew he had to have her.

When he had found a way of coaxing a bit of humility from her it had been the same kind of relief that generals feel from winning a war. Not necessarily the start of peace, but an end to the bloodshed.

And the way she had kissed him afterward…

His body had been practically singing from that kiss. He had wanted so badly to take it further, had endured the worst torture of wanting to continue that kiss and coax more from her. She had to have seen that he had been hard for her in the bath, glancing at her body now and then as they had washed up, and then he had learned that she was no longer menstruating and he could take her if he wanted… and oh how he had indeed wanted.

He had abstained though, rather than pushing her pride and emotions even further. Being as sleep deprived as he was and as unbalanced as he felt he wasn't too sure that he could have even finished anything he started. Not to mention Carrie…

It had stunned him so earlier to learn of her death in the manner he did. He hadn't allowed himself any time or mind to be paid on reflecting on this, but now that they had come to a state of rest amongst all the chaos…

No matter how she had angered or hurt or humiliated him in the past, he never wished for her death. After she had lost the second child and been in danger of dying it had been him who had forced his last healer to save her. After she had reached recovery he had dismissed his old healer, bringing in the young elf Aboris instead, who seemed more sympathetic to his ex-wife. Jareth could feel a tightening in his chest that was a sure sign that he was coming out of his own shock that he hadn't even been aware Carrie's death had sent him into. Yes, toward the end of their relationship he had grown to honestly hate her, but that didn't take away the good memories either. Or the fact that once he had indeed loved her.

He had sent Sarah to her room right after the bath, not sure how well he would be able to hide his grief from her if she stayed. And the memories of his ex-wife and the view in the crystal had smashed his desire down to a pulp for the night now that he allowed himself to remember them. After Sarah went back to her room he had retreated to his own bed, trying to find sleep as tears spilled from his eyes from both the sorrow of Carrie's ghastly death and the closure that his son and wife were indeed his for always. Now there was no one trying to physically take them from him. Sarah wouldn't take Toby from him, and she had finally seen that she herself had no choice but to stay. She didn't love him yet no, but he was still confident that that would come in time now that she could see that he was all she had.

Jareth had seen her confusion on her face when he had dismissed her rather than ravage her, but tonight he couldn't have done so even if she had laid out before him begging for him. And there was time for all that later… now it felt like all the time in the world. The council could say what they wanted to, as far as he was concerned she was his wife and there was no changing that now.

All the same, he still wanted their approval so that it could never be questioned or challenged again.

When he had woken up this morning he had been so anxious and nervous that he had a permanent feeling of dizziness about him and had formed a rude headache by the time he was properly dressed for traveling to his parent's. After which he had gone to make sure that Mavid was ready as well, giving Sarah a little more time to sleep in, only to find Mavid wasn't ready yet and indeed had found his attendant still not only in his room but in bed with the wet nurse, which meant that his son wasn't being prepared for the trip yet either! It had been obvious from the blatant way Mavid had rolled his eyes and stalked about when Jareth had ordered him to untie the blonde fae that he was still cross with him from last night, something else that Jareth sorely wasn't in the mood for.

His patience already strung thin, he had gone back to Sarah's room to get her about, only to be ambushed in the halls on the way there by Rally, who found it her duty to tell him all the reasons why she thought it would be better to push back the dinner to a later date so that she could properly educate his wife on manners, saying something along the lines of how she had less grace than a drunken troll with gout. There was absolutely no way he could do such a thing, considering it wasn't even his choice for them to all attend this in the first place. But then he came upon Clora and Ishapell on their way to wake Sarah, who immediately latched onto him and Rally. Once they heard Rally's topic of conversation they both had joined in with their own opinions, Clora agreeing that Sarah had no poise but insisted that she would be fine anyway and Ishapell insisting that Sarah would do fine… probably.

Finally, as they had reached Sarah's door he had had to tell them all to be silent and just get her ready, giving them orders to preoccupy them as he had made his way into Sarah's room.

Truth be told he was very nervous about the dinner tonight. So much so that he had hardly gotten a wink of sleep despite his exhaustion. And there was so much to do before they would be ready for dinner anyway. They had to hurry if they were to arrive at his folk's castle before dinner with enough time to get Sarah settled in, preened and primped and prepared, and introduce her to his mother. He found himself much more nervous about his parents than he was of the higher powers of the counsel.

Sarah sat before him with a scowl just barely showing around the corners of her face as he tried to give her some small words of advice. Who knew if she was really listening or not, but if she had the sense of a gremlin she had better. This information was for her own good if nothing else. He was aware that he was acting just this side of cold to her, but he couldn't help it. Besides his own nervousness, he knew it was imperative for him to present himself a certain way tonight. The council wouldn't be won over by affections or love between a king and queen.

They would decide if Sarah was a good match for him and his kingdom based on how properly they conducted themselves in a high-pressure situation such as this could be.

He would make up the lack of affection to her after this all was over. In the meantime… Jareth said another small prayer inside his head that nothing went wrong. His nerves just wouldn't be able to take it today.

"Sarah, are you paying attention?!" he snapped, noticing when she jumped slightly and the glazed over look left her.

"Uh, yes… don't say or do anything embarrassing," she muttered as Ishapell and Clora finished with her hair.

Jareth let out another frustrated sigh, half certain that it had just been a lucky guess. "Is her stuff packed then?" he called to Rally, who was still in the closet. No doubt she would charge him extra for this. Since he was a king and she was in his kingdom if he gave her an order she had to follow it, but as it was she wasn't a real servant and he was certainly paying her better money then a servant would ever make.

"Almost," Rally called out to him, coming out of the closet with two long wheeled trunks behind her that when standing were taller than she was. Her seven-year-old appearance would have made such a thing seem cute if he hadn't known anything about her. "I haven't gotten any of her jewelry packed yet."

They didn't have time for this. If Mavid and Tallia didn't have Toby ready to go by the time Sarah was set he swore heads would roll.

"You both go and help with the jewelry," he ordered his cousins, "Have Rally tell you every outfit she packed and select some pieces accordingly. There is a smaller bag at the bottom of the case for you to place them in."

Both Clora and Ishapell did as told, moving over to the closet to help Rally pack, leaving Jareth alone with Sarah. She continued to sit on the edge of her bed, the dazed look back on her face as if she was still in shock even after last night. She had to snap out of it by the time they got to his parent's place. He wanted to say something… do something, to make it easier for her somehow. Now, he was lost for what he could do though. "Sarah?" he prompted softly, seeking her attention once more.

Her eyes flicked up to his, but it was like she was looking past him.

He wanted to say something to comfort her. "We'll be traveling by carriage," was what left his lips.

She looked back down to her lap in silence. She had to still be in shock, no matter what promises she made him he knew she would never have absolutely nothing to say under normal circumstances.

"We are all packed, your majesty," Rally informed him, all of them coming out of the closet with Sarah's luggage in tow.

"Let's go then." Jareth reached out and took Sarah's hand again, leading her with him out into the hall.

Mavid and Tallia were both dressed and waiting, Toby in Tallia's arms. She had two totes strapped over each shoulder full of his things, and Mavid was gathering up Jareth's luggage from in front of his room door where he had left them. Jareth took his son from the wet nurse, placing a kiss on his forehead before handing him over to Sarah. The dazed look on her face seemed to leave her and she took him in her arms, her lips going to his head to kiss him and Jareth paused to watch as she held him close, her cheek coming to rest against his as she stroked her hand through his curls.

"Shall we go then?" Mavid asked, a slight edge in his voice.

Jareth looked over at the male, seeing traces of bitterness in his face over their differences. It wasn't the first time they had disagreed on things before though, and although they were both proud, they both also knew that eventually, Mavid would move on from it. Jareth would just have to make it up to him somehow. In the meantime, however, Jareth scowled at Mavid as a warning for his attitude. "You'll handle Sarah's bags too. Clear?" he drawled out.

Mavid's hands were already full from Jareth's luggage, but he couldn't say no. "Like a crystal," he bit back, shifting the luggage around to take Sarah's as well. Jareth didn't wait for him, taking Sarah's arm and leading her down the halls with him, the rest all following behind down the filth-ridden passageways. The goblins would be alright by themselves for a couple days. The places they weren't allowed in in the castle locked up tight against them like his room and study. They tended to do the same stuff whether he was there or not so he wasn't worried about them. Aboris was here as well to put out any fires they should start.

"How far away are your parents?" Sarah piped up, surprising him as she showed the first signs of interest in what was going on.

"A couple territories away, but it shouldn't be an unbearably long trip." Truth be told it would have been mere seconds if they could go by magic, but the extra amounts of baggage made it near impossible. The carriage pulled by the Pegasus ponies would be the fastest way of travel for them.

He led the way to the main door, unlocking it and stepping out to the front of his castle. The carriage was out front already, waiting for them. Torik was at the front of the carriage, holding the bridle of the lead horse so they wouldn't go anywhere. The carriage itself was long, with two separate compartments built into it. The outside was ivory with gilded trim to match the white coats of the ponies and the golden bridles they adorned. Next, to him, Sarah gasped softly, her eyes big at the sight of the winged creatures, there were a total of nine of them on the rig. "They're beautiful," she sighed, her eyes locked on the horses.

Jareth nodded his head in agreement, thinking perhaps when they had more time he would allow her to look freely at them. He could even take her riding if she wanted. He looked them over again and couldn't help it as the corner of his lip raised up in a smirk when he recognized the pony on their side second from the back was the one that he had most recently broken.

After Mavid and Torik had gotten the luggage loaded- something Jareth wasn't sure would ever get done with the way Mavid was snapping orders at the boy, who would give him dirty looks back occasionally when the superior male's back was turned- and everyone had gotten their seating figured out they were off; Clora, Ishapell, Rally and Tallia in the front compartment, Jareth, Sarah and Toby in the back, Torik on the rear to act as footman, and Mavid in the driver's seat.

Sitting across from him, Toby on her lap, Sarah gave a little start when the horses got a running start enough to leap into the air, pulling them along into the air with them. He watched with amusement as she had slid over to the side of the carriage, pulling back the little purple curtain from the window to look out. Her eyes got even bigger at the sight of the Labyrinth far below them and Jareth couldn't help but smile as she held Toby up to look too, even more, amazed than the babe was. It was like she was a child trapped in a woman's body at times. Things that were commonplace to him were so exciting, so curious, so frightening to her. It was all part of her charm.

"Look, Toby, it's the Bog of Eternal Stench!" she was whispering excitedly to him as they continued to look out the window.

Jareth didn't bother, having seen the sights so many times from flying over the Labyrinth in his owl form. He knew that the Bog of Stench, once you were far enough over it to escape the smell, looked quite beautiful, the waters a tie-dye of different shades of greens all coming together.

Jareth pulled over a little case that had been packed into the carriage with them and opened it up, taking out one of the bottles that Tallia had made for Toby for the trip. Inside the case yet was another bottle and some crackers, and some food that had been packed for Sarah and himself as well as a flask of water. Since they had had no time for breakfast they would need to have lunch on the go.

Sarah's eyes never left the window, even long after Toby had lost interest and had started bouncing impatiently in her lap, "Sar Sar!"

Jareth took his son from her to hold in his own lap so he could set Toby up with a bottle, which she didn't fight him on as she was still too entranced with the sights of the different landscapes below, and sang softly to his son as they traveled. He handed Sarah one of the plates of food, which she took and placed on her lap, tearing herself away from the window view long enough to scarf down her food hungrily. Jareth didn't scold her for it, knowing that it had been quite a while since either of them had had a chance to eat and he felt quite starved himself. Jareth used his free hand to arrange his own meal before he himself tucked in. It wasn't until Sarah gasped again sometime later that Jareth looked back over at her.

"What is that?! In the distance there, another castle?" She squeaked, looking out the little window once more.

Jareth could assume what she was seeing and sure enough when he slid back the curtain from his own little window he saw that he was right. In the distance, you could see another kingdom. The castle there was grand but looked less like a castle and more like an enormous box, the outer walls built of white stone with hundreds of holes punched out all around it that upon closer inspection one could tell were windows. "That is the castle of Fairy Queen Mab. Hers is one of the kingdoms that borders my own. You might have noticed the fairy problem I have outside my outer wall," he added, an edge in his voice.

Sarah nodded her head but never took her eyes from the window, her food forgotten on her lap. "How many other kingdoms border yours?" she asked.

Jareth took Toby's empty bottle from him, switching it for a few crackers for the tike to munch on. "Two more. A large portion of my kingdom is bordered by the mountains, which is why creatures like dwarfs and rock-callers can sometimes end up in my lands."

Sarah looked over at him then, her face dead serious. "I want you to let my friends out of that dungeon. I want you to let them go."

Jareth shifted Toby around to sit on his thigh. Truthfully, they only had a few more days of sentence to carry out, but he was an opportunist. "If you behave yourself at dinner tonight, I will send word back to Aboris at the castle to free them yet tonight," he bargained, not wanting to take any extra chances with tonight. "Sound fair?"

Sarah bit her bottom lip, clearly wanting to fight for them to be let out now rather than tonight, but in the end nodded her head in agreement. "Alright, but before the night is over… promise?"

"You have my word," Jareth agreed.

Sarah eventually went back to looking out the window, handing her empty plate over to be put back into the food case, and Jareth leaned back in his seat to digest in peace, watching her out of the corner of his eye as he held his son in his lap. Toby was quickly falling asleep, cracker crumbs sprinkled over the fabric of Jareth's jacket, and Jareth couldn't help but watch Sarah. The deep burgundy of her dress made the different shades of mahoganies in her hair stand out and look even deeper and richer against the pale creaminess of her skin. The green flecks in her eyes a surprise amongst all that white.

If dinner was successful, he had plans to do so much more tonight than simply free her ragtag friends from their cell. Even right now the main thing that was keeping him from having her straddle his lap and ride him hard was the fact that Toby was in here with them, and even though he was falling asleep he was still getting old enough that they might not be able to get away with such a thing should he wake up.

Jareth was glad she was looking out the window and ignoring him, otherwise, she wouldn't have been able to miss the bulge in his leggings.

After a while more of traveling in silence, Toby stretched his small body out in Jareth's arms in a big yawn before coiling back up into a fetal position to go to sleep. Jareth couldn't help but smile as he brought his tired son up and placed a kiss on his cheek.

Sarah's attention turned back to him then and there was an odd look on her face as she watched this.

"What?" he asked, keeping his voice down for Toby's sake.

"Can I hold him?" she asked, already holding out her arms for him.

Jareth shook his head, "He just fell asleep, you'll disturb him."

Sarah glowered at him at that. "I will not," she hissed, earning a pointed look from Jareth but she showed no sign of caring. "I just want to hold him."

"You can wait. I said he just fell asleep."

Sarah let out a huff and leaned back in her seat in defeat, for now, glaring out the window.

"You can't act like that at supper. I hope you understand," Jareth warned her. "And I'm not being unreasonable, Sarah. It's almost time for his nap anyway and shifting him between us is unnecessary jostling. You will get to hold him again later."

"I'm not acting like anything," Sarah sniffed, "I just wanted to hold him."

"Because I was holding him."

"No!"

"Lower your voice this instant!" Jareth hissed. "And yes, it is because I'm holding him. You didn't insist on it till I gave him affection."

Sarah huffed again and turned back to glare out the window.

Jareth let out a sigh, "Just because I give him affection doesn't mean that he won't grow to love you as well… just like on the same token, he won't grow to hate me if you give him more," Jareth added, catching her gaze when she turned back to him, an expression of guilt on her face before she conceded the issue and turned back to the window, not another thing to say.

"When we get to my parents' castle," Jareth informed her, switching the subject, "We will be able to change for the night, Clora and Ishapell will help you of course. Most likely my mother will want a chance to meet you before the council arrives, so we will have some time to spend with my parents and I expect you to be polite. For dinner, I want you to just watch me and not do anything until I do so, like when my father came to visit."

"Fine," Sarah growled out.

"You had better forget about your bad mood by the time we arrive," Jareth warned her. "If you don't behave yourself I can think of three scalawags that have yet another night in a cell to look forward to."

That did earn him a glare, but Sarah kept her mouth wisely shut.

If she could just behave herself today and satisfy the council then Jareth didn't care if she glared at him and talked back to him all day tomorrow, he just couldn't afford it today and she wasn't helping him any right now. With how his nerves already were…

Sarah let out a gasp of awe as she continued to look out the window, Jareth could guess what she saw. They had to be arriving at his parents' castle by now, and he knew it was a sight enough to stop anyone dead in their tracks the first time seeing it. The castle was magnificently huge and made of fawn colored marble, the smooth texture gleaming like honey in the light. The towers, the outer gate, the grounds, everything was immaculate, pristine, and perfectly put together right down to the last leaf on the hedges. On the inside, it was the same and everyone inside the castle was the same as well. Gods he didn't miss it. It was enough to drive someone insane trying to live up to such perfection as was expected from the fae royalty.

The carriage landed in the front yard, bringing them right up to the main doors of the castle, where Erib already awaited them with four servants to show them to their rooms. After the others piled out of the front compartment Mavid opened the door for them and reached out his hand to help Sarah out first. She looked at Mavid's hand like it would turn into a fist at any moment and Jareth had to clear his throat and give her a pointed look before she finally took Mavid's hand and allowed him to help her out. Once she was out Mavid came back into the doorway and Jareth passed Toby out for him to take so he could climb out himself. He let out a sigh and forced himself into the proper mindset, like an actor preparing for a role.

As he stepped out of the carriage he did so with a grace and ease that had been forced to become natural to him since childhood, holding himself like every bit the lord he was. It would have been more proper for Mavid or one of the other servants to continue to hold Toby for him, but nonetheless, he took his son back from him, balancing him against his hip in a way that took away nothing from the superior way he held himself; just a proud king holding his son.

The others were all stiff with nerves and the anxiety of what was expected of them for tonight, except for Sarah. His wife was standing in front of the carriage next to him, looking up at the glorious castle in plain wonder as her eyes bulged and her lips parted in a tiny gape.

Erib bowed at the waist to them, straightening back up almost right away while the other servants held the pose longer. Like usual his long white hair was pulled into a strict bun at the crown of his head and his robes were of a pale pearl color. "Welcome, your highnesses. I trust your trip was pleasant," he greeted Jareth formally because he had to and they both knew it.

"It was," Jareth answered formally back.

The other servants rushed forward, keeping a distance as they stepped around Jareth and Sarah as was custom to retrieve the luggage.

"If you would care to follow I will show you to your rooms where you may change and freshen up before seeing the king and queen."

Jareth nodded his head, taking Sarah's hand and tucking it into the crook of his free arm's elbow since she was too awestruck to remember to do so herself, her eyes dancing all around the grounds. "That would be most welcomed."

Erib turned and Jareth followed, walking at a slower pace than normal so it wouldn't be so obvious that he was practically pulling Sarah along as she continued to look around. In his other arm, his son was still barely keeping awake, his little body slack and his head resting against Jareth's shoulder. They entered the castle in an order befitting their ranks, with Jareth, Sarah, and Toby at the front, then Rally and Ishapell and Clora, then Mavid, Tallia and Torik, then the servants carrying their luggage. The finery of the inside was enough to cause Sarah to gape openly and as much as he longed to do so, to remind her out loud to close her mouth would have been almost even more unsightly then her leaving it open. Jareth nudged her slightly with the elbow she was holding, turning her attention back to him in what he hoped would be enough of a hint to remind her of her manners, but she didn't even look at him. He nudged her harder, to which she gasped and shot him a confused and irritated look. Thankfully Erib's back was to them though. He said nothing to her because he couldn't and thankfully when she turned back to look at the beautiful murals that lined the walls her mouth remained closed this time.

"Here we are," Erib said, after leading them down many halls into the heart of the castle. "If you find these rooms insufficient you may take it up with the king and queen," he said, his voice so neutral you could have almost missed that he had in a very formal way just told them that if they didn't like the room it didn't matter in the least. "I'll show the others to their rooms while you settle in if you would like."

Jareth nodded, "Is there a room set up in this suit for my son?" he questioned.

Erib raised one brow at that, which for him was practically a sneer. That was the fae way, every emotion so subtle and toned down it was hard to know what anyone was feeling till you spent enough time with them to know the signs. Jareth had grown up around Erib though. "The Queen has suggested that the young prince stays in the nursery while you are here."

That surprised Jareth, but of course, he didn't show it. The nursery Erib was talking about was the one he had spent his first years in, located right next door to his parent's room. He had had no idea it was still set up after all this time. He had no objection though and so handed his son off to Tallia, who would no doubt be staying in the nursery too then. "Very well, Mavid will stay in the room next to mine and you may place the others where you may."

"Of course," Erib nodded, formally.

Jareth turned to Ishapell and Clora then. "Be ready in an hour to come help my queen get ready for supper tonight."

They both bowed, as was custom under formal settings such as this was.

Sarah liked to accuse him of expecting too much of her in her lessons… she wouldn't have lasted a week with his upbringing.

Normally when he returned here now since he had become a king of his own kingdom he tended to not keep to the strict expectations of his raising, but tonight he would need to so best to get in the mindset sooner rather than later.

Jareth ushered Sarah into the suite, leaving the door open behind them as a couple of the servants brought their baggage in, carrying it quietly past them straight for the closets. The suite they were staying in was quite grand, as it was Jareth's room from when he had housed here during his young adult years. It had been changed into another guest room of course, which was partially why Jareth had been so surprised to learn that the nursery had been kept up at all. The décor was of his mother's influence with crème colored walls and a large bed covered with a rich brown bedspread centered in the middle of the room. The rugs were thick and matched the sheets, and there was a door against the wall that led to a private bathroom. There was also a door on the opposite side that led into the walk-in closet that he and Sarah would share.

The grand sight in this room though was the mural that covered the whole of the ceiling, depicting a scene of a forest orgy, with fairies and satyrs and nymphs and creatures Sarah couldn't even name, all in intricate poses amongst the foliage. Jareth let Sarah stand there and simply look up at it for a minute, her cheeks turning red before she tore her eyes back down to the ground. He couldn't help but smirk when she looked over and caught him watching her, turning her back on him in her embarrassment as she pretended to find something interesting about a decorative vase in the corner.

Jareth removed the long black traveling jacket he had been wearing, tossing it on the bed carelessly as the servants finished their unpacking and without a word exited the room, closing the door behind them and Jareth fought the temptation to lock it, avoiding looking at Sarah because he knew if he allowed himself to really look her over again his mind would no doubt venture to places he didn't need it to be right now. Especially with that blush on her cheeks…

She could drive him mad without ever even trying.

X

Sarah hadn't felt like anything was real this morning like it was a dream. Now she was convinced it was. Everything she was seeing today was straight out of a dream. An extremely vivid dream. The Pegasus ponies, the carriage… this room. She had never seen anything so extravagant even in movies. She wondered if maybe the royal family in England had anything even close to as fine as the things she was seeing here. It was so different from the castle at the center of the labyrinth that it was staggering, almost blinding in contrast to the dark coldness of the castle there. Not that this castle seemed warmer, in fact, it was quite a bit chillier, but it was a different kind of cold, a brighter more beautiful cold; like comparing a winter snow to a cave.

She could have never imagined such refinery in her wildest dreams… no human could have. It had completely cleared her mind from the nerves she had felt before arriving. Now that she was here and had had more time to take it in though, it only made her feel even more nervous than before. How could Jareth expect her to be anything even close to fitting in with all this? She came from an upper-middle-class family, but compared to all this she felt white trash suddenly. It was the first time she felt as if she wasn't worthy of Jareth. And the way he was acting, **had** been acting all day… he walked about as if all this was beneath even his **notice**.

Sarah couldn't help the sinking feeling she had in her stomach that even if she did everything right tonight she might still be judged not good enough to be Jareth's queen. Then what would that mean for her and Toby? He would be taken away from her, to be brought up by someone who would be 'fit'. Sarah wanted to just crawl under the huge bed and stay there. At least then she wouldn't have to have dinner with some council before they inevitably judged her inadequate to be a part of Toby's life. She wanted to hold Toby again more than anything now. When she had held him this morning he had been like a grounding for her, keeping her steady. Keeping her whole.

Jareth removed his jacket and tossed it on the bed as the door closed behind the retreating servants. Sarah looked over her shoulder, but Jareth was back to ignoring her again. She couldn't figure out why he was doing that. All day he had been acting… not like himself. It was creeping her out more than if he had been acting normal.

"Ishapell and Clora will be here shortly to help you undress and get ready for tonight. Try to remember what Rally has managed to teach you so far," Jareth instructed, going into the closet and coming back out a couple minutes later with a change of clothes in his arms.

Great, like she wanted to be around either of them. Sarah already had her mind made up not to speak a word to either of them no matter what.

"What are you doing?" Sarah asked as he set the clothes down on the foot of the bed and double checked that he had everything he needed.

"I will be changing in Mavid's room. I'm not allowed to be in here while you change," he said bitterly, "And I have matters to go over with him."

"What matters?"

"If it was your concern I would go over it with you now, wouldn't I?" he asked, obviously annoyed with her questioning him. He didn't have to be such a jerk about it though, Sarah thought resentfully to herself as she sat down on the side of the bed next to where Jareth had thrown his coat.

Jareth hardly even looked at her as he scooped up his clothing in his arms and came around the bed, so she was caught off guard when he suddenly dipped down and placed a chaste kiss on her lips. His eyes were intense as they held her gaze, but not with passion like normal, or even with rage. Like she could watch his mind racing through them as if they were a window. She could finally see a little of the anxiety he was feeling which, contrary to what she would have thought, only made her feel more nervous herself.

"Try your very best to behave tonight," Jareth told her, just the faintest hint of pleading creeping around the corners of his voice, "And I will do far more for you than simply free your friends from their little prison," he placed another kiss on her lips quickly before standing up and exiting the room.

X


	27. Chapter 27

Beta for this chapter is The Art of Suicide

X

"Isn't she ready yet?" Jareth huffed, looking over to Mavid for an answer. He and Mavid were standing out in the hall, ready at last but waiting for Sarah.

"No, but she soon will be, your highness."

Jareth let out a huff again. Sure, why would it be important for her to be on time? They were **only** about to introduce her to his mother for the first time. No rush!

Jareth could only huff once more in his frustration as Mavid offered him a small look of sympathy.

Jareth was set to go, dressed in a purple tunic that was fitted tight to his chest torso, striped with black lines that all flowed vertically up to the high neck of the top, peeking just out of the top of the plum fabric in metal spines around his head. The sleeves flared out almost ridiculously so from shoulder to elbow, with black leather cuffs keeping the fabric tight against his arms from elbow to wrist. At the very center of his chest, his pendant dangled from its chain over the tunic in plain view. His hair was tied back but was still as wild as ever, now with a few strands streaked a deep purple here and there to match the tunic. His leggings were black and wickedly tight, disappearing into the shining black material of his high boots.

Mavid was likewise put together impeccably, wearing a dark grey sleeveless tunic that was fitting for his station, and a pair of leggings made from the same shining material as Jareth's boots, his hair recently cut short against the back of his head and spiked up by a servant so that the brand on the back of his neck was more visible.

Jareth was just about ready to ask again if she was finished when the door opened of its own accord, Clora stepping out. She was still in her traveling clothes, but she and Ishapell wouldn't be needed for their pre dinner meeting with his parents. His cousins would get ready after Sarah was finished and meet them for supper.

"She's ready," Clora smiled, sending Mavid a separate flirty smile, which the male rolled his eyes at as she stepped back so Sarah could pass through the door.

She looked just as wonderful as she had the night his father had decided to join them, her dark hair pulled tight against her head in a thick braid at the base of her skull, left to rest on her shoulder so that a golden clip with purple jewels at the end of the tresses could be seen. Her dress was a deep purple that matched the color of his own tunic, the sleeves off the shoulder made of dyed fur rather than fabric, hanging down from her shoulders to her elbows to help ward off the chill of the castle. The fabric of her full skirt hung long in the back, forming a train, but the front of the skirting rose high enough on the front that it showed off one of her legs all the way up to the level of her knee. He could see because of this that the shoes she wore were also dyed a deep purple, a large crystal sewn onto the toe of each one. The makeup she wore was dark around the eyes, his cousins having applied plenty of eyeliner. It made her look older, giving a mysterious and dark edge to her.

He shook himself out of the trance her beauty had practically lured him into, noticing that she, in fact, was looking at him in much the same way with satisfaction. He cleared his throat and watched as her eyes regained focus, snapping up to his like she was shocked that she had done it at all, much less that he had caught her. He held his hand out for her to take and she cleared her own throat, holding her own hand up in a gesture for him to wait.

"Wait a moment," Sarah pleaded, "Just… nobody's telling me anything. I didn't even know until we were packing this morning that the dinner was being held outside of the castle. What's going on tonight? What's the plan here?" she demanded.

Jareth inwardly chastised himself for not remembering to tell her before. That could have caused tonight to go badly in itself. "We are going to meet with my parents in the west sitting room, give us a chance to all get settled with each other before the council arrives. If you are polite to my mother all should go well. I would suggest complimenting her on something, she loves compliments about her looks.

"Once the council arrives- there are three members by the way- we will go to the throne room to greet them. Then, once they have had a chance to change we will all move to the dining hall for supper. Assuming nothing happens, dinner will be followed by some light conversation and entertainment, afterward we will retire to bed for the night. Tomorrow we will head back to the Labyrinth with an answer on whether you may continue to be my queen."

Sarah's face had gone a lighter shade of pale upon hearing that. "You mean I'm going to meet your parents right now?!"

"Don't be so nervous, Sarah You've already met my father," she gave him a hard look at the reminder, "And I already told you that if you compliment my mother's appearance she will like you."

Sarah didn't look any surer than before. Jareth stroked his hand down her arm reassuringly, "I'll do most of the talking, Sarah," he assured her, "Just don't say anything upsetting."

He took her arm in his to guide her along, to which she had a moment's hesitation, but ultimately followed before he could even tell her to do so.

He led her down the familiar halls of his childhood, Mavid trailing along behind as they went to the west sitting room, where his parents would be waiting for them. The entire time Sarah was walking on pins and needles, her back straighter than most rods and her whole demeanor tense. At least she was taking this seriously and not gaping at every painting and vase along the way like some tourist on vacation. They had done everything they could to get her ready for this night, despite her objections. Now it was all up to her.

Jareth felt queasy from the thought.

"Mavid, walk ahead," he ordered his attendant. Both Sarah and Mavid looked to him in confusion but Mavid nodded regardless and walked on ahead, Jareth pulling Sarah back with him at a much slower pace till Mavid finally turned a corner and was out of sight.

Jareth pulled Sarah aside to a stop in the middle of the deserted hallway. She looked at him like she was annoyed by being led around everywhere. He had more important matters on his mind than to scold her for such a thing though. "Sarah, listen to me and hear what I have to say," he warned her firmly, "I tell you this now for your own good because I know that you are seeing many things here that you are not used to, and I am sure you will see a great many more." He spoke slowly and carefully so that she wouldn't miss a single syllable of what he had to tell her next. "My world is different from yours, but the Labyrinth is not nearly as dangerous nor as beautiful as the things you can find deep in the world of the fae. No matter what you see here, beautiful or terrifying, you **must** try to hide your emotions. Do your very best not to react to **anything** , understood?"

Sarah looked truly confused at that. "Yes but… but why?"

Jareth was as serious as death in his answer, "Because the consequences for such can be far direr than you could ever guess at. In the goblin kingdom none outrank us, but in this kingdom and at this meal we will basically only have say over the common servants. I won't be able to protect you if trouble turns its head toward you… so I must beg you not to give it a reason to do so."

Fear was apparent in her eyes now, for which he was thankful for. At least now she understood just how serious this was. If she offended anyone it wouldn't be his punishments upon her for her to worry about… and he knew that there were members of the council that were not only creative in their retributions but had fantastic appetites for such circumstances.

"Sarah, I have to explain to you a little more about this meeting," Jareth continued on, having hoped till now that he wouldn't have to tell her at all but now seeing the necessity for it, "When those of the fae get together at formal gatherings, there is a general procedure in which a meal is made to be a buffet for the senses, every dish designed to receive a reaction from one or more of the senses. Not always in a good way either. Only take one or two bites of everything set out for you tonight, try not to finish anything, but refuse nothing. Understand?"

Sarah nodded her head again, still worried but not nearly as dazed from confusion. "Yes, I believe so."

"The entertainment that will follow… will be very different from what you are used to as well. My understanding is that my father has already arranged for something. With fae gatherings it's like a meal, only instead of invoking the senses, our forms of entertainment are things that stir up the emotions, the more the better, and like with the meal, not all will be good. No matter what happens all I ask is that you not react to it openly."

"What happens to 'stir up the emotions'?" Sarah questioned him, suspicion already mixing with anger in her tone as she already began to judge the ways of him and his clan. When she did that it made Jareth want to shove her away from him.

He kept his face utterly expressionless though, "It depends on what emotions are being drawn on, like mirth, or sorrow, or regret, or lust, or sometimes anger or embarrassment. It is always considered best when emotions run high in both those watching and those performing… because the point is for all to be **experiencing**. And it always differs. Sometimes things like orgies can start, or fights, or once I have even witnessed a suicide take place as entertainment. No matter what it is, say and do as little as you possibly can and I will try to do what I can if you can't stand it. But remember it is only for tonight."

Sarah had gone a shade of grey and her eyes were shining like she might tear up at any minute with her fear. She was in this deep, and now there was no backing out for either of them.

"Do you understand me, Sarah? When the council arrives, I want you to say nothing and do nothing more than you absolutely must. Do you understand?" he demanded, a bit of his own fear creeping into his voice.

After a long pause Sarah nodded her head, but what else could she have done, and he let out a deep sigh before firmly placing his expressionless mask back into place and escorting her on his arm down the hall to join Mavid once more.

X

Sarah couldn't help the fear that she carried around like a heavy weight on her back. Tonight would be harder to endure than she thought, and she still had no way of knowing just how hard it could be. Jareth said he had seen a suicide take place once…

There was no way she could see something like that and do nothing. Just no way.

The fact that anyone could…

She pushed it far from her mind. She wouldn't think about that now, there were plenty other things for her to worry about for now as Jareth led her down the hall to rejoin Mavid.

She just kept getting told repeatedly to say nothing and do nothing, like that was the only good advice they could give her. Why even be present for this thing?!

They came up to a door that was just as ornate as the others, made of a stone that reminded Sarah of pearls and laced with crème colored trim that created a picture of a griffin rearing up on its hind legs on the door. She'd never seen anything like it in the Aboveground. Most of the doors here were the same, with some sort of creature rearing up drawn out in the crème colored lines. Some of the creatures weren't foreign to Sarah, for instance, she saw a lion depicted on one, and on another an ostrich. Jareth spared her one last look that she could have taken as the equivalent of him saying 'don't you dare embarrass me', before nodding his head to Mavid to go ahead.

Mavid knocked on the door twice, just loud enough to be heard and in a moment the door was opened by a servant girl. When she bowed low to them, Sarah could see on the back of her neck under her short hair was the same black brand that Mavid carried. Was that why servants bowed so ridiculously low around here? As a way of showing who they belonged to as well as showing respect?

Jareth gave the girl a tight nod of acknowledgment before looking past her. "We were led to believe that my parents are waiting for us here."

"Right inside, your highness," she agreed before righting herself and letting them into the room.

Jareth ushered Sarah into the room and she tried very hard not to react to what she was seeing, but she was sure that the awe was evident in her eyes regardless. The sitting room was gorgeous, larger than most of the rooms back at Jareth's castle, and brilliantly lit by a large jeweled chandelier at the center of the ceiling. Like the rest of the castle, the color scheme relied heavily on pale and neutral colored stone, but what impressed Sarah the most was the massive fireplace to the side. There was no fire going in it right now, which was a shame since like the rest of the castle the room was cold, but it was large enough that if someone wanted to they could have walked right into it without even ducking their head. Set up in front of it was a circular seating arrangement made up of three velvet brown fainting couches and a matching chair. Seated on the only chair facing them was a woman that even Sarah could instantly recognize as Jareth's mother.

The female was willowy like all fae women seemed to be. She looked frail with her thinness and pale blonde hair that was the exact same shade as Jareth's. But there was a strength to the way she held herself, even when just sitting on a chair, and her eyes were sharp enough that Sarah practically flinched when they raked over her, taking in everything about her it seemed. A silver band was worn around her head to signify her status, the same as Sarah's ring symbolized hers, and she wore a stunning gown of light green. It fell from her chest down to the floor without any flares like ruffles or a full skirt, showing more of how thin she was throughout her figure and at the top in the center of the chest was a very large brooch made of gold and covered with green speckled jewels like Sarah had never seen before. It connected her dress to an elegant cape made of a light flowing green material that hung over her shoulders and was set low so you could still see half her back before the cape interfered.

Toby was in her lap, looking happy as a clam as she bounced her knee slightly underneath him. Sarah bit back her immediate reaction, which was to take Toby back from the stranger holding him.

"Your son and his wife have come to join you," the girl informed the queen before stepping off to the side so she could see for herself.

"Thank you, Marie. That will be all."

The girl nodded and with another bow left the room.

Sarah couldn't help but notice that even her voice sounded thin like she was fighting a bad mood or something despite the bouncing babe in her hands.

Jareth made the first move, stepping over to her and bending down to place a quick kiss on her cheek, which she returned before gesturing for them to sit with her. "You're looking well, mother," Jareth greeted formally as he took his seat. Sarah wasn't sure if she should try to greet his mother in the same way or not but sat down next to Jareth on the little couch instead.

Mavid simply stood off to the side to pretend he was furniture, in the same way that Sarah had seen before when Jareth's father had visited them and from Tallia.

The queen's brows raised on her head but that was the only change in her expression as far as Sarah could tell. "So formal, Jareth? The council hasn't even arrived yet… like your father." She tacked on, a slight edge in her voice.

Sarah was glad to hear that, but both Jareth and his mother seemed to grow tense about it and she could practically see the thoughts passing back and forth between their locked eyes. After a moment of silence though, those startling eyes of his mother's turned to hers and Sarah tried to 'stay in character' as the other woman examined her once more. Jareth had told her not to say or do anything she didn't have to for one night and her friends would be let out, her future with Toby secured, and then they could go home tomorrow and get out of this formal nightmare. In order to pull this off, Sarah returned to what she knew, namely when she was asked to act like someone other than herself then she should do just that… Act.

Sarah had decided already that her role for the night would to be to pretend she was a zombie. Who was to say, before the night was over maybe she would really get into her role and eat Jareth's brains out!

Sarah smiled at her own joke despite herself, trying to hide it, but the queen saw it instantly and returned her full attention to her. "Something amusing to you?"

There was no threat in her voice, although Jareth shot Sarah a warning look, but Sarah immediately felt flustered by the very slight slip that the queen had caught. _You're a zombie, a zombie, walking dead,_ she reminded herself frantically, pulling the emotion back from her face so she could be expressionless. "I was just watching Toby, he looks happy," she explained thinking that surely that would be a good explanation for an ill-timed smile.

The queen's face was unreadable as she simply continued to stare her down. "Toby?"

"It's just a nickname," Jareth chimed in, "She is referring to Little Jareth."

The queen looked back down at the babe in her arms and eventually, a smile showed on her face too as Toby squealed from the bouncing of her knee. "Yes, he certainly does, doesn't he? It's a shame he isn't brought over more often."

Jareth leaned back further in his seat at that.

The room was tense once again.

X

Jareth watched as his son cooed on his mother's leg, not wanting to say anything else. She was in a bad mood, giving his wife a horrible first impression.

Jareth glanced over at Sarah, who sat next to him without any expression on her face, but he could still see the worry in her eyes. This wasn't going nearly as well as he had hoped, and he knew why. His mother was angry at his father. The way she had said that he wasn't here, Jareth was sure that Sarah was lost to what was going on, but he could read between the lines. His father was no doubt late because he was with one of his lovers again.

No doubt that was more important than being on time to meet the council that he himself had asked to come here and review Jareth's choice of bride. Jareth felt his own bitterness towards his father like a sour taste on the back of his tongue and if it hadn't been for centuries of better breeding he would have been inclined to want to spit.

Jareth knew that he probably shouldn't do so, and should, in fact, fight the impulse, but nonetheless, he allowed himself to reach over and place his hand over Sarah's, which had been resting in her lap, as a gesture of assurance that she was doing fine. His mother noticed the gesture of course and seemed to focus on Sarah rather than himself and he immediately wished that he hadn't done such a thing. With how close his mother was looking at Sarah now she was sure to see just how worried and albeit out of her depth the poor girl was. His mother wasn't as prone to emotion-toying as most fae, but she was still fae. Thus far, he had no clue what her feelings towards his wife were. She seemed to barely even noticed she was in the room thanks to his father.

Sarah seemed to take his gesture as a prompt of some kind though rather than what it was and immediately straightened her back a little more before blurting out "I love your hair," to his mother.

Jareth wanted to bury his face in his hands for her, knowing that Sarah likely felt the same way after that awkward comment. That was his own doing, though wasn't it? He had told her to compliment his mother's appearance to gain her favor. He had startled her though and thinking it was a cue she had just blurted out 'I love your hair' like some naïve groupie. He had meant compliment like 'my you are lovely looking' or even 'you look more beautiful than I could have envisioned for myself' would have been fine. These were both some of many proper compliments that he knew for a fact Rally had taught Sarah during her lessons.

And then to phrase it the way she did… he knew it was a perfectly ordinary way to compliment something in the Aboveground to profess love for it, be it another's eyes or shoes, but here in the Underground to claim love for something like that is to mean that you have found no superiors to it and carry a sort of fixation for it, like to love another person.

There was a pregnant pause in the room as everyone waited to see how his mother would react to such an informal and unexpected compliment. Jareth could see out of the corner of his eye as Sarah's cheeks grew red and although she was fighting underneath to keep her composure Jareth knew that she was aware she had messed that one up, now they could only wait and see just how badly.

His mother was rather stunned by it, not having a response ready for such a compliment, which was why it was proper to stick to a set list of compliments to give and receive… so that the one you are complementing will already have a response. "Well… thank you."

Jareth cleared his throat and searched for something to move on the conversation with… at this moment anything would work. "I was surprised to learn that the nursery had been kept up all this time."

His mother's attention went back to him and Jareth was relieved when a very small but genuine smile pulled at her lips. "Of course, I kept it up. I had hoped to use it again in case I could manage a second pregnancy. And there was always the hope that someday I would get to board one of my grandchildren there, and now I have," she smiled in accomplishment, looking down at Toby in her arms with love. "I hope to board even more grandchildren in that room in future visits," she hinted gently, flicking her gaze to Sarah, who had gone so rigid next to him that Jareth would have sworn she had just been surrounded by unseen hot pokers if he hadn't known better.

Jareth tensed slightly too in his own bitterness at Sarah's reaction, hiding it by pretending that he was simply shifting position, bringing his ankle up to rest on his knee. "Indeed," he agreed, not saying more as to not test Sarah's strength of will at the moment lest she add in her opinion on the touchy matter.

She didn't get the chance though because at that moment the door to the sitting room opened and Erib came in, bowing low to the group. "The council has begun to arrive, your majesties."

"They're a little earlier than expected," his mother commented, her tone making it obvious that she wasn't happy to hear this news at all and Jareth briefly wondered if his mother would dare to order the council to wait. He wouldn't put it past her.

"Where is my father, Erib?" Jareth questioned. If anyone was to know Erib would. Just like Mavid always knew his whereabouts.

"He is indisposed-"

"Go and get him right now," Jareth hissed back, his already strung thin temper reaching its limit with his father. It was his father that had gone to the council in the first place with his doubts about Jareth's choice of bride. The whole reason he had had to go through most of the stress of the last two weeks was in preparation for tonight. His father would show up for it by God!

Erib narrowed his eyes at his tone but backed out of the room with a 'right away' just before Jareth could unleash some of his tension on the self-righteous servant.

Silence filled the room… and stayed in it.

It seemed like an unbearably long time in which the only one brave enough to break the silent tension of the room was Toby, who was still happily making noises to himself as he bounced on his grandmother's knee.

X

Sarah wanted nothing more than to just completely shut down her brain and go through dinner without any clue of what was going on around her. The problem was, although she was pretty much expected to do just that, she still was stuck inside her body.

The last few minutes had been horribly uncomfortable, just sitting in the lounge room with tensions running high all around… but then the king showed up and well… it only got worse from there.

As soon as the king strolled into the room, already with a deep glower on his face, Jareth had practically jumped up to meet him at the door, telling him in a severely sarcastic tone that it was nice of him to finally pull himself out from between some harlot's thighs and join them for the dinner that he helped in creating.

Some of it Sarah was sure was going over her head, but she wondered if the king had really been with another woman. She had looked over to the queen who was tight-lipped and solemn. The queen stopped bouncing Toby and was glaring at the king from under her eyelashes.

Sarah's cheeks heated from the embarrassment of being caught in what seemed to her to be a very private argument.

The king pushed past Jareth like he wasn't worth his time, which although Sarah took some amusement in that she still worried about the fact that although Jareth said nothing else for the moment his face heated out of his own outrage at being pushed aside. Sarah took a lesson from Mavid, staying perfectly still and quiet in hopes that they would forget she was there and hopefully with any luck she would be able to simply be absorbed into the couch if she pretended to be furniture well enough. At least it would save her from going to this dinner.

It didn't work. The king's eyes fell right on her and she tensed, fighting not to glare at him for making her feel so uncomfortable as his eyes raked over her. "At least she looks the part," the king mumbled. "Appearances can be deceiving though," he tacked on, sending a look to Jareth as if daring him to start a fight or something.

Jareth's face flushed even more, but he held both his tongue and himself perfectly still through what must have been a huge effort. Sarah was astounded to see Jareth having to cow-tow to someone for a change. She might have smiled if she weren't glaring at the kings back for his cattiness.

The king turned his attention to the queen, who was still glaring at him, but indirectly as if she only cared the slightest about hiding it. Now that the king's attention was on her Sarah wanted very much to take Toby from her, but she was sure she would get in trouble if she simply pulled Toby from the queen's hands. She jumped slightly despite herself when the king reached out momentarily to rustle the curls on Toby's head, messing his hair up in a way that almost reminded her of Jareth's.

"My son has given me his… do I not get a greeting from you as well?" the king demanded of Kaleen.

Sarah looked over at Jareth, who was glaring daggers at his father worse than ever as he bullied his mother. His body was so tense and still, Sarah wondered for a moment if his heart still even beat inside his chest. He looked like he was just waiting for an excuse to possibly attack his father, although maybe he was just waiting in case there was a need to protect his mother. A lot of things about Jareth seemed to suddenly begin to make sense to her now and she turned her head away when his eyes snapped over to hers, not wanting to attract the wrath he had curling inside him at the moment.

"Did your whore not give you welcoming enough for the night?" Kaleen hissed, snapping Sarah's attention back to the scene unfolding before her.

The room went completely still and was so quiet that you could have heard a strand of hair hitting the floor.

The king tensed in anger at the jab and Sarah held her breath as he glanced around at the audience he had now, slowly looking back to his wife. He leaned down close to her ear. Sarah couldn't believe how still the queen was sitting, her face set as if she was afraid of nothing, showing that she was a strong woman at heart. Her expression flickered for an instant when the king whispered something inaudible in her ear, but her mask was back in place when he finally stood up and turned his back on her, sending looks to everyone in the room separately as though seeing who would say anything. His eyes held Jareth's the longest, who was staring at the king as though he wanted to murder him, "Are you and your female ready for dinner then?" the king asked him, a hint of warning underlying his question regarding what just happened.

Jareth's jaw twitched in his anger, but ultimately, he simply nodded his head. Very slowly as though he had forgotten how to do so and was out of practice.

"Good, then let's not keep the council waiting," the king shrugged as if it had not been him holding everyone else up just now.

Jareth took Toby from his mother so that she could rise and ultimately handed him over to Mavid to carry.

Sarah tried to recollect herself from the shock that the display between the king and queen had seemed to send her into as Jareth took hold of her hand and forced her to take his arm rather than allowing her to take it on her own. She thought about pulling her arm back from him, indeed she wanted to. She was furious with him already and was sure that it would only get worse at dinner. After seeing the way the king treated the queen… was that how it would be between her and Jareth for all time, a never-ending cycle of his cruelty and bullying. The queen hadn't struck Sarah as weak-willed or meek, she had even snapped at Jareth's father in front of everyone about the fact that he had been running around on her. All the same, she had been intimidated and humiliated for it by his father; something that had rocked Sarah to her core with both familiarity, and worry about what the future held for her.

She looked over at Jareth out of the corner of her eye as he pulled her along next to him. He clearly had hated seeing what his father did to his mother, so why did he think it was alright for him to act the same way to her?

Sarah took a deep breath and tried to push those thoughts aside, figuring she could reflect on them later as she reminded herself of why she was going through with this in the first place. She thought about her friends; Hoggle, Ludo, and Sir Didymus. Not only would Jareth let them out of prison if they pulled this off tonight, but surely as queen, she would be able to protect them from Jareth's future wraths as well. He would probably never forget that they had betrayed him in favor of her, so there could be a time again in the future when she would need to help them just as she was doing now.

She thought of Torik and how he was always at Ishapell's side, at her beck and call, a human pet. Sarah would rather die than officially have a term thrown on her like "Jareth's pet". And although the liberties she had that Torik didn't seemed far and few… they were there nonetheless, and she wanted to keep them.

And Toby… the biggest reason of all that she had to try her best to go along with all this ridiculousness tonight.

She startled from her own convictions when Jareth pulled her to an abrupt halt when she nearly ran into the back of the queen's dress. She looked around to see where they had ended up, since she hadn't paid attention to where they were going and noticed that they had entered a circular alcove that was large enough that Sarah would have easily dubbed it a room her eyes traveled to the large ornate door in the room and she knew they would be going through it even before Erib stepped up to open it for them.

The king and queen entered first, then she and Jareth to be followed by the attendants. Like all the other rooms in the palace, this one was decorated in exquisite natural tones, with fawn colored marble flooring and honey stone walls. The only furniture in this room was a long table that was carved from more stone and probably weighed more than Sarah's old house. About sixteen tiny fireplaces lined the walls of the room, half of them currently burning, which was good because Sarah felt a chill go up her spine from the temperature in the room. It was colder here than in the Labyrinth and Sarah couldn't help but be glad Jareth had picked out a dress with fur on it for her to wear for this dinner.

Already seated at the dining table where Clora and Ishapell, and against the wall behind them stood Tallia and Torik.

Clora was dressed up in a form-fitting pale yellow dress, which hugged every curve of her body from her chest to her ankles, a great mane of long yellow feathers surrounding her hips to form a sort of mini skirt over the material. More yellow feathers hung from her ears, barely visible under the mass of curls her hair had been styled into and her hair and makeup looked just as polished as they had when they had had Jareth's father join them for dinner.

Next to her Ishapell was dressed in a flowing cerulean gown that wrapped around her bust and was left to hang freely down her body, shimmering in the firelight. Her long blonde hair was secured in a tight band at the crown of her head, the length hanging in a thick braid that was rather unlike Ishapell's normal preference of buns and wraps. It didn't go unnoticed by Sarah when Mavid's head turned so he could look at Ishapell as he carried Toby over to the servant's wall. Sarah was starting to notice that when it came to clothing the members of the fae race seemed to really go for rich and bright color schemes. She wondered if that was just more of what Jareth had said earlier, about how gatherings were generally a feast for the senses. Would that be a sight?

Mavid went over and passed Toby on to Tallia before taking his place in line against the wall, directly behind the chair Sarah supposed Jareth would be seated in, and as Sarah watched she had to fight with herself over the urge to ask to hold him. When it came to the council, Rally made it clear to her during their many lessons that it would be considered improper for either her or Jareth to hide away behind the babe while receiving such important guests for a formal dinner.

"Come along," Jareth instructed her, pulling her along by her hand to the left side of the massive table. Sarah put her 'zombie act' back on and allowed him to pull her chair out for her, taking a seat with as much poise as she could remember from her lessons next to Ishapell and Clora. Sarah supposed that they were allowed to be at this dinner too since they were part of Jareth's royal family rather than just servants like Rally.

Jareth took his seat next to her and to his left sat his mother, and next to her at the head of the table sat his father. This left the other side of the table open and Sarah could guess the council would take up occupancy there. Erib came into the room a moment later and took his place behind the king's chair against the wall.

Sarah almost jumped out of her skin when the dining room door opened again and a servant stepped in, bowing low to them before announcing to them that the council would join them now.

Everybody stood up from their seats to show welcome and respect for when they would come in. Sarah felt almost sick as butterflies raced around her stomach and she clasped her hands together when she noticed they had started to shake. She hadn't thought she had been all that nervous about this till now. She practically held her breath as the council members were announced by the servant.

The servant announced the first council member was Shayia, and Sarah couldn't help but feel even more nervous as the sharp eyes of the female who walked in focused instantly and solely on her, as though judging her right from the start. Shayia's skin was an orangish-brown in color, her hair falling in black intricate braids down her back to weave around each other like a crocheted curtain. Her lips and hips were both full and made her seem almost seductive, but her striking and calculating green eyes made her seem formidable. A green dress wrapped itself around her body, showing her curves and splitting up the side to show a fair amount of the side of her leg in what could have been called a scandalous showing down here, but it complimented her eyes and the long sleeves made sure that the side of her leg was about the only skin that showed.

Just a step behind her was another female that went unacknowledged through any introductions from the servant, which led Sarah to believe she must have been to Shayia what Mavid was to Jareth, but she was far from unnoticeable as she looked humanoid, except for the fact that her eyes were twice as big as a human's or fae's and were purely black, so it was like looking into deep water. The creature's features were that of a petite girl, with hair the color of pink cotton candy, kept short and severely curled. she wore a simple pale-green dress, the sleeves kept short and the skirt kept long.

Both Shayia and her companion came up upon the table, receiving bows from everyone before they returned them and the councilwoman stood by her chair near the king on the other side of the table from Jareth's mother, her strange-looking attendant going to stand behind her against the wall. Once they were situated everyone's attention turned back to the dining room doors.

The servant at the door next introduced a male called Tavin, who stepped into the room with his head held high. He didn't look at Sarah at all, hardly sparing glances at any of the females, save for Shayia, as he made his way to his seat next to her. Tavin was what one could call a pretty man. He had features that Sarah and a thousand other girls would kill for; from his long and thick black hair to his matching eyelashes and pouting lips. The black eyeliner he wore only emphasized his face's beauty. He was dressed in a sort of hard-looking black and red fabric Sarah wasn't familiar with but reminded her a little of Jareth's armor.

A male followed Tavin in but wasn't announced, which meant that he was likely a servant, possibly even an attendant, Sarah wasn't sure which. Tavin's companion was easily the tallest one in the room, standing at what could have been 6'5. His height was the first thing anyone would notice about him, the second thing being his bulk. If he was of the fae it would have greatly surprised Sarah, being that they tended to all be svelte in physicality. This one was a walking mountain it seemed, with dark brown skin and a head that was clean-shaven of any hair. He was dressed in more of the same hard-looking material as Tavin, except where Tavin wore a whole outfit the man-mountain behind him wore only tight fitted bottoms, leaving his ripped torso bare to the room.

Sarah looked over to Jareth for a reaction cue, but he gave none whatsoever as he bowed to Tavin and Sarah was forced to follow suit.

The last one to be announced to them was already walking in the room before Tavin could even really get to his seat. Sarah was just as stunned by this one's appearance as she had been by just about every fae she had met so far. Like all the others he was stunning. His face was all sharp angles, his expression was one of self-confidence and purpose. His hair was a white-blonde that was kept short but stood all about his head as if someone had aimed a blow dryer right under his chin and pointed it up. The way he walked was what caught her attention the most. Up till now, she had always thought that Jareth tended to strut when he walked… this Dominix could have easily given him a lesson as he came over to the table, giving a bow before taking a stand next to the chair directly across from her.

Sarah gathered up her courage and looked up across the table at the three guests that would decide the outcome of tonight. Dominix was looking her over but when she looked up his blue eyes met hers dead on. Something about the baby blue color looking at her from such a stern-looking face threw her for a moment and she just barely caught herself before she could gape in surprise. He might have strutted in here like he owned the world- for all Sarah knew maybe he did- but there was nothing arrogant in his stare.

Sarah said a silent prayer to herself and hoped that the night went fast.


	28. Chapter 28

Beta for this chapter is The Art of Suicide

X

Jareth couldn't help but keep glancing over at Sarah from the corner of his eye, worried that maybe she would crack under the pressure at any moment. After the council had filed in his father and he both verbally welcomed them to dinner, then they all took a seat as food was brought out and set out for them by servants. Sarah seemed to be remembering her proper table manners well, although at one point she had her hand resting on the edge of the table. He corrected her by taking his wine glass and bringing it back to him, letting the bottom of the flute hit her knuckles before he raised it to his lips to sip from. When he had brought it back down, sure enough, she had moved her hand off the table.

It had been the tiniest slip on her part, and his correction seemingly unnoticeable, yet when he had looked up he had noticed that Shayia's green eyes were looking where Sarah's hand had been moments ago, leaving Jareth to wonder if she had seen it or not and if it really mattered.

Dinner was relatively quiet, but that was how these formal fae dinners usually went. The conversation would wait till after the meal, allowing all to focus on the different senses that each dish invoked.

Jareth also watched Sarah to see how much she could hide her reactions from the meal. He doubted that she recognized any of the dishes, all of them originating in the Underground. None the less though she seemed to be listening to what he had said about being sure to try everything but finish nothing. Jareth watched as she placed her fork into a grey mushy substance, the visual meant to offend the eyes and brought it slowly to her mouth, letting it slide in between her lips and bringing the fork out clean and Jareth had to fight to hide his own reaction of mirth as surprise caused her eyes to widen slightly at the realization that although it had no taste, it was freezing cold! Shocking her sense of touch.

Jareth waited till her eyes had darted over to his own plate before using his spoon to gather just a pinch of a yellow powder. She did the same with her own, taking cues as to how much she should try of what from him, which was the best thing she could have done really. Jareth brought the little bit of powder up to his mouth and she did the same. The powder was a delicacy made from finely crushed griffin bones, but he figured that wasn't something Sarah had to know. The texture was like salt, and Jareth got the very faintest taste of raw meat on the back of his tongue from it, knowing that no doubt Sarah could taste the same though she didn't know what it was.

Jareth watched with both amusement and apprehension as she drained her wine glass, which seemed to have become the chaser for everything she tried rather than her water. The wine was of the stronger variety of goblin wine that he had gifted his parents with regularly from his kingdom. When one of the servants refilled it, she took yet another sip before looking back to his plate. Jareth looked across the table again to see that Dominix's gaze was fixed on Sarah now as he sipped his own wine, his expression unreadable.

Jareth looked over to see that Sarah was taking yet another drink, the very faintest of a blush spreading to her cheeks as a sign that she would soon be drunk if she didn't slow down. Since it would be considered improper for him to point it out Jareth scrambled to think of a way to get her to stop without bringing it to the attention of the table.

Her hand had crept back up to rest on the edge of the table too!

Jareth grasped his water flute and brought it back in the same manner as he had before with his wine glass, but this time instead of knocking her knuckles with it, he inserted it into her hand, turning back to his own meal before she could give him a reaction.

She seemed to get it though, slowly bringing his water glass up to sip from before returning it to the table and putting her hand back on her lap.

Jareth was hopeful that they just might get through this meal.

X

Jareth was so annoying. Sarah didn't really care for his little 'hints' as she tried to just get through her meal. She would far from admit it, but yes, she had been drinking her wine a little fast perhaps. Her face felt warm but she was feeling a lot calmer about this whole ridiculous situation, and that had been the point. She figured that it would probably be easier for her… not to get drunk or anything… but to just take the edge off her nerves. So far, it was working rather well, the butterflies settling in her stomach and although she had found it unsettling at first to have the members of the council take turns looking at her, she now felt much more relaxed as they did so.

The wine tasted much better than the food up to this point anyway, and now her sense of taste was dulled from the drink, the act of chewing or swallowing being more entertaining to her than the meal itself at this point thanks to the wine. Jareth scooped up some pale white beads from his plate that looked to her like colorless peas and she followed suit, finding with surprise that when she bit down on them they would almost pop with air in her mouth, while the skins were rather sweet tasting.

She tried a little of everything, nothing looking familiar to her except the water… which had now become her drink of choice thanks to Jareth, and the wine... Which she would sip from when Jareth wasn't looking.

Some of the foods were grotesque looking but would taste remarkably good, .and some were the exact opposite. Some tasted so bad she had to fight to not spit them out, and others would smell either wonderful or foul. Even the textures were a wide range, being anywhere from chewy to slimy and some varied between hot and cold. She only really hesitated once when a bowl was set in front of her that looked like mashed potatoes… but it was making a continuous hissing noise as though something lived in it. As soon as her fork pierced it the noise stopped though, and she had to assume it was a trick using escaping air and the way it was prepared.

When the main course had been taken away a dessert tray was placed before her and Sarah was sure the surprise showed on her face despite herself when she looked down to see for desert they were each being served a fortune cookie!

Sarah looked over at Jareth, who was using his hands to crack open the cookie and pull his fortune out. She did the same with her own, looking at the bit of paper that had an actual typed message on it, just like at restaurants in the aboveground. Suddenly Sarah remembered the electric guitar that Jareth had back at the castle and the mention she had heard someone make before about the 'black magic market'.

Did they get contraband items from the aboveground here or something? Maybe that was where these had come from. She ran her finger over the paper before she read it, reveling in the thought that this cookie might have come from the Aboveground just like she had, as though there was a deep connection between her and this bit of novelty food.

The piece of paper only had one sentence written on it in two neat lines _"It is easier to resist in the beginning than in the end"_.

Sarah couldn't help but glower at her fortune and crumpled it up in her fist, seeing that Jareth was watching her do this out of the corner of his eye before he folded his own bit of paper neatly.

"I hope everyone enjoyed their meal," the king spoke up, being the first to speak since the meal began.

"These foods of fate are quite charming," the queen offered up. "From the Aboveground are they not?"

The king nodded his head and Sarah tensed when his eyes found her, fighting the urge to shrink back behind Jareth's profile. "Surely our new daughter recognizes these as she is also from the Aboveground."

That did it.

Sarah felt her cheeks practically catch on fire as all eyes turned to her for her reply. _Don't say anything stupid! Please don't say anything stupid!_ But for the life of her, what could she say about fortune cookies that was smart?! "Uh, yea-es," she tried to subtly correct herself. Ladies didn't say 'yeah' after all. "They're… they're actually called 'fortune cookies'… if you want your fortune to come true you must eat all of your cookie," she explained, only to second guess herself when all eyes still stayed on her. "Or so I believe."

There was a moment of silence as they all seemed to process this.

Sarah looked up from her plate when Dominix picked his cookie pieces up and popped a piece into his mouth. After a moment, some of the others from the table started to do the same. "As charming and informative as these little messages, isn't she?" he smirked, his eyes going to Jareth rather than her.

Jareth nodded his head in agreement and a sly smile came to his lips, "Lucky enough she also happens to come in a divinely sweet packaging," he commented, taking a bite out of his own cookie.

Sarah tensed next to him but tried hard to keep her face emotionless, even though she could have died from embarrassment.

"Did anyone receive good news from their food then?" the queen asked, getting a little light conversation going.

Ishapell joined in the conversation then. "Mine says, 'A stranger will become important to you'."

Shayia's lip curled up into a smile at that. "My paper said the very same thing, perhaps you are my stranger," she purred, lifting a brow in a gesture that Sarah could almost have called suggestive. When Ishapell blushed and the others at the table either smiled or chuckled lightly she realized that it was **meant** to be suggestive. She couldn't know if the darker woman was just teasing Ishapell or if she meant it though.

Shayia turned to her fellow council members then. "What about you two? Any strangers in your futures?" She had an accent in her speech that Sarah couldn't recognize, but sounded slightly like a Russian one even though Sarah knew that that wasn't it.

"There are sure to be strangers in all our futures," Tavin said, as though it was absurd to think otherwise.

Dominix raised a brow and swept another glance over Sarah, "Why scoff when your fortune just may be right, Shayia? After all, our new Goblin Queen is a stranger to us… perhaps she is important too."

All eyes were on Sarah again and she felt herself blushing all over again and although she hated it she could do nothing for it. Dominix seemed to have a quick wit about him, but his guarded expressions made it hard for Sarah to know if he was building her up or cutting her down with his remarks. She had no response for him though and couldn't for the life of her think of something that she knew would be appropriate. She just felt too… hot. Like her head was over an oven or something. Maybe she should have slowed down even more on the wine…

Jareth came to her rescue with a response. "You both dodged Shayia's inquiry very well. Don't tell us you received bad news." When Dominix and Tavin turned back to Jareth he simply continued to smirk in total confidence. "I'll share if you do," he encouraged them.

Sarah would have probably thanked him for that if they weren't in public… and if he was nicer to her more often.

Dominix rose to Jareth's playful challenge first. "Mine says that I will make a change for the better."

"'You lack ambition'," Tavin read out loud.

Jareth unfolded his to show them his own message. "'You make your own fortune'," he smirked before finishing off his cookie.

"Like I said, a most charming concept," the queen confirmed.

The king stood up from the table then, motioning for them all to do the same. "If you all would be pleased to do so, there are fresh drinks awaiting us in our west sitting room where we can relax and digest while our entertainment for tonight gets prepared."

X

As his father rose and led the way to the sitting room, the queen on his arm once more; Jareth hooked Sarah's hand in his arm and prepared to lead her into the dining room too, Mavid moving up from the wall and stepping over to Jareth. The male kept his voice low and leaned in close as he whispered to Jareth, "Tavin's servant informed me that Sarah seems to have Dominix and Shayia's favor."

Jareth simply nodded his head but inside he was grinning like a felon at that bit of news. Tavin would likely follow suit on how the other two voted, and with any luck, Sarah would stay in their favor.

Jareth's only worry as he led Sarah into the sitting room was that the dinner had been the easy part. The chance of demonstrating poise and manners and formality. Now they would all sit and 'relax'. Mostly they would talk, as it was the proper time for conversation, and since it was only logical… the council would likely want to talk either to or about his new wife. Jareth could only hope that she had calmed down from dinner. He could only save her so many times before he knew some members of the council might consider it a game to try to back Sarah into a corner that Jareth couldn't reach her in. That was the absolute last direction he wanted these talks to go.

Jareth looked over and noticed that the faint gin blossoms on Sarah's cheeks were still there and as pink as ever, her eyes drooping just the slightest bit. Jareth said a silent prayer to any god that would listen asking that Sarah not be tipsy for long and if so to not let it show.

The west sitting room was different from his mother's other rooms, the rich brownstones of the walls and floors practically blending in with the rich gold of the furniture and moldings, giving the room a darker and cozier feel than any of the others. Rich brown furs littered the floor here and there, and a large fireplace was already aglow off to the side. Random furniture was set up about the room in an informal large circle, everything being offered from finely crafted sofas to mere cushions on the floor. It left a large space bare in the center of the room right in the light of the fireplace.

Jareth placed his hand over Sarah's so she couldn't slip away from him and led her over to a loveseat that was wide enough for just two that was located just close enough to the fire to feel the faintest warmth on the air. He worried that any closer and the mix of fire and alcohol would cause Sarah to become overheated and sloppy. She looked like she might fall asleep at any moment as it was.

As everyone found comfortable seats Jareth motioned for Tallia to bring his son over to them, taking him gently in his arms. Like Sarah, Toby was starting to fall asleep too.

"Dad-dad," Toby acknowledged sweetly, causing Jareth to smile despite his own warnings about showing emotions to Sarah, who had leaned away from him at the term of recognition from his son.

"You have quite the handsome son, Jareth," Dominix complemented him.

Jareth kept his face humble even though he obviously already knew that. "Thank you very much."

"He looks just like Jareth did when he was a baby," Queen Kaleen mentioned, her voice full of approval as she watched both Jareth and her grandson with pride in her tone and on her face.

Jareth glanced over at Sarah, who seemed to be looking Toby over very carefully to find the truth in such a statement.

"What did you name him?" Shayia inquired.

"Little Jareth, although… occasionally we call him Toby… as a pet name." He hadn't wanted to mention that, but he had thought that while it would mean nothing to the council, perhaps it would help him gain more favor with his own wife. Sarah hardly reacted and Jareth had to wonder if she was perhaps listening to what he had told her for once or if she just hadn't even noticed.

"Has he started using magic yet?"

Sarah's interest perked up at that.

Jareth offered a small smile. "Not yet no, but he has already developed a healthy love for music."

"Do you sing to him often, Sarah?" King Hamold chimed in, forcing Sarah into the conversation.

It would be impolite for Sarah to give one-worded answers while in the presence of the council. "Now and then I do," Sarah confirmed.

Jareth mentally approved, just long enough to politely answer without inviting further conversation.

"Were you planning to provide a playmate for him soon?" Tavin asked his attention on Sarah for probably the first time that night.

Jareth knew that she wouldn't know what Tavin meant, and although he knew it would seem a little awkward, he answered before she could say anything. "I had plans to set up a breeding between Mavid and another quality servant in hopes of procuring one for him. With any luck, it will take before Little Jareth can grow much older."

Jareth wanted to nudge Sarah to get her to stop looking at him like she was now, confusion mixed with suspicion and judgment. It was possibly the last face he wanted her making right now. So like her to judge what she didn't understand, he thought bitterly.

What Tavin was talking about was arranging for a playmate for Toby that would grow up beside him and eventually become a personal attendant to him. Jareth had the option of purchasing a child from a less fortunate family for him, but with any luck, an offspring of Mavid's would give him a better chance of obtaining a playmate of superior quality for his son. In the Aboveground, he knew that such practices were common amongst thoroughbred equines, and had also been periodically practiced in civilizations that went back before even the birth of his father… yet Sarah would still surely pass judgment on it.

He flicked a glance over to Mavid… who hadn't reacted at all one way or the other. They had already had passing talks of this before.

"Oh, is that to be our entertainment for tonight then?" Tavin asked, a sly grin splitting his full lips as his attention turned to Mavid as well. "Do we get to witness the mating tonight?"

Jareth couldn't help but smirk at the council member's teasing, the feel of the room keeping relaxed as servants floated around the room with trays of wine glasses and rainbow-colored jiggers. Tavin was known to like men exclusively, his current favorite being the dark-colored human he had with him tonight.

Mavid smiled back at Tavin out of politeness alone and Jareth forced himself not to laugh when Tavin practically batted his full lashes in return.

"There will be plenty of time for such shows yet tonight, Sire," Queen Kaleen interrupted gently, "But right now I think it is time for the young prince to be put to sleep."

Jareth turned his attention back down to his son in his arms, who was already dozing off for the night. He nodded his head in agreement and despite the audience, gave his son a kiss on the head before passing him over to Sarah so she could also say good night.

As she smiled fondly and kissed Toby, Jareth looked up to see the council all watching her as she did so, as if sizing her up. He was confident in nothing else if not that they would find her ability to be a fit mother for his child most adequate.

Tallia took Toby from Sarah when she was done and followed another servant out of the room in route for the nursery.

Jareth took a jigger from a passing servant and sipped from the side, the warm drink inside trickling down his throat and leaving behind a pleasant heat.

Now that the very word 'entertainment' had been uttered and the babe retired, the air of the room seemed laced with a special kind of anticipation that even he himself felt, a new alertness to the eyes of the fae and more seasoned servants alike that knew how these formal meetings usually went. Jareth looked over to Sarah again to see if she was betraying any reaction to the charged energy in the room. Although she looked slightly wary, Jareth couldn't help but notice that beyond her Torik was seated on the floor next to Ishapell's legs, his posture rigid and his eyes wide with nervousness. He obviously wasn't accustomed to such gatherings and was doing a poor job at hiding his nerves.

Jareth saw out of the corner of his eye that both Dominix and Tavin had spotted the expression on Torik's face as well and were looking him over with new interest, charging the air all over again. This was what fae's tended to look for… reactions, expressions, emotions. All were vastly entertaining given the proper time and situation. Now was the time, and Ishapell's pet had unknowingly just made himself a prime target for the emotion-tampering that some members of the fae loved to indulge in. Jareth saw Tavin's eyes shoot elsewhere in the room and looked back to see that behind him Mavid had noticed Torik's concern as well, but had slipped in allowing a smug smirk to come to his features in relish.

Jareth's eyes raced back to the other side of the room where his parents were sitting, his mother had caught on to Torik's reactions but he could tell with one look from his father that Hamold had seen everything that he had just seen too.

Clora and Shayia's eyes twinkled with amusement and Ishapell went very still in her seat next to Torik, her own mask slipping around the edges with worry for her servant.

"Well, dinner was quite the success," Dominix complemented, breaking the momentary silence in the room but doing nothing to dampen the anticipation in the air. There were murmured agreements from around the room and Jareth raised his own jigger along with the others in a salute to his father and mother.

"Let's not forget as well to toast the Goblin King for the opportunity afforded us to properly get acquainted with both his bride and newborn before their public introductions," Shayia chimed in, raising her glass to Jareth.

Jareth raised his glass in return, not missing it when Sarah slammed back the rest of the wine in her own glass.

"If we should indeed decide that she is fit to stay such," Tavin tacked on, no doubt just trying for a reaction.

Jareth expected some such comment at some point tonight from at least one of them and so gave no reaction. Sarah, however, knitted her brows in a scowl for a millisecond before disguising it with a fake yawn, excusing herself for the lesser offense.

"No need to excuse yourself," Dominix smirked, "You are right in pointing out that it is time to relax and enjoy ourselves."

"Now is not the time for boredom though," Tavin countered, turning his attention to King Hamold, "At the risk of rushing the evening's itinerary, if the girl is bored perhaps a little show would awaken her."

"If you have a desire you would like to offer up Council Member Tavin, I'm sure it would amuse us all to hear it," the king responded, leaning back in his chair in a disguise of relaxation.

A slow and predatory smile spread over Tavin's face and he got up from his seat, swirling his wine glass around in his hand before raising it up to his lips in a showy fashion that only built on the anticipation in the air before turning his focus entirely on Torik. "This is your servant?" he questioned Ishapell, though his eyes never left the young man sitting on the floor, his innocent brown eyes wide as saucers.

Next to Jareth, Sarah tensed.

Ishapell's worry was slipping through to her face now, as she slowly nodded her head. "Yes, sire. His name is-"

"Of no importance," Tavin cut off, "Will you have him stand up?"

Jareth watched as his cousin's lips pressed into a narrow line before she again slowly nodded her head. Tavin was far above her station, and most everyone in the room knew that she could refuse the council member almost nothing. "Stand up, Torik."

Despite the fear in the young man's eyes, he brought himself to his feet before Tavin. Jareth was impressed with the young human's resolve and discipline when he made no verbal protest when Tavin brazenly reached out and cupped him, only jumping in surprise. "My, isn't he young?" Tavin observed, never taking his hand from Torik's groin.

"He just turned sixteen," Ishapell commented, her cheeks aflame as she tried not to acknowledge where Tavin's hand was now groping.

Sarah shot Jareth a look over her shoulder and Jareth shot her back one, reminding her that for tonight she was forbidden from reactions.

"Is that a young age even by your world's standards, Sarah?" Shayia asked, having seen Sarah and Jareth's exchange.

Sarah nodded her head once. "People in my world aren't considered adults till they're twenty-one."

"Is that the appropriate age all over your realm?"

"Well… there are some countries I suppose where you can be quite younger and considered an adult," she slowly admitted.

"Has he experienced a woman's body yet?" Tavin asked, drawing the attention in the room back to Torik.

Jareth watched as his cousin's lips practically disappeared despite herself, but still, she simply nodded her head. Torik's own face had gone beet red.

"He must be new to it though, I take it from his shyness, what about a man's body? Has he experienced that?"

Torik's eyes couldn't have gotten any bigger without falling out and he flinched as if fighting with himself to not back out of Tavin's reach, answering the question in of itself.

Tavin grinned like the devil, "How… _corruptible_ ," he purred, finally releasing Torik's member.

"The dramatics are all well and good, friend, but what is your desire?" Dominix prompted.

Tavin turned back on them all, giving his back to Torik for the moment but not surrendering his attention on him. "A virginity being lost can make for the most sensuous bouquet of mixed emotions. I know little entertainment that is better than that which can exhibit such powerful emotions such as ecstasy, shame, excitement, self-discovery… utterly intoxicating to watch."

Jareth had known Tavin to have a pension for the emotion of humiliation, probably why he had had his own servant come to the gathering in nothing but tight lacquer breeches.

Jareth took Sarah's hand in his to ground her, as well as remind her to keep passive. Although she said nothing her seating was so rigid she wouldn't have swayed if she had been hit from behind with a crowbar, and her jaw was set tight enough that Jareth noticed a slight twitch had formed at the corner of her lip. When she took his hand, she squeezed down hard enough on his hand that he had to fight not to wince, and then fight again not to yell at her for it. He knew she was angry, she didn't have to drop any more hints for him.

There was nothing he could do about this at the moment though.

"Are you thinking of having your own fine specimen of a pet take his virginity before us?" Dominix inquired a hint of amusement in his voice.

Jareth had to hold back his own reaction to that, the mental thought of Torik, who was easily the smallest in stature of men in the room being mounted by the walking giant of a human making even himself want to wince and move his buttocks further back in his seat.

"I'm sure Henson would be too much for any inexperienced male, virgin or not," Tavin grinned, his eyes flickering to his servant against the wall. Tavin's eyes shot to Mavid then and Jareth could feel the male brace himself for what the councilman was about to suggest take place for tonight's entertainment. "Mavid would be far more suitable for him I believe."

King Hamold smirked then. "If you wish for the human to be penetrated by-"

"Not at all," Tavin interrupted, acting as though the very idea were tasteless and unthinkable. "No that's not what I mean at all my good king, I do not mean for the lad's own penetration to take place tonight. No, I think it would be far more fetching if Mavid was to kneel on all fours before us and allow the human to top him."

With the desire finally named the air crackled anew and Jareth felt the hairs on the back of his neck rise from not only his own objection to such an act, but also from the knowledge that, although Mavid made little reaction but to tighten his jaw and stare at the opposite wall like it had just spoken to him, if given the chance his attendant would no doubt be screaming his own protests. After living hundreds of years, there was very little that one didn't try when it came to sex, no matter what preferences stuck with someone there was always room for experimentation. It wasn't being with another male that Jareth knew Mavid would protest to, but rather the fact that the male being challenged to top him was a human boy that he had a particularly strong dislike for.

Torik seemed to be no fonder of the idea either, having shrunk back from Tavin, practically inching his way behind Ishapell's chair.

Jareth hadn't been on board for this suggestion from the start, but he wouldn't allow that kind of humiliation to befall his friend. He would have to be political about it though, and so for the moment held his tongue.

"Mavid had a particular favor about his features when he saw myself prospecting the young man, enjoying his pending humiliation. I think it would be most lovely for him to be made to join in on that humiliation, for them to share it as they are forced to find pleasure in the act. For this human to find that his own cock cares nothing for gender when it comes to pleasure while Mavid swallows the shame of being topped by one of less experience and stature is the entertainment that dreams can be made of."

Jareth spoke up then. "Although you do paint a… chilling picture I'm afraid I must cut you off there. Since I am very soon to breed Mavid I trust you understand that not only do I want him in prime condition physically and mentally for it, but I can't chance a waste of his seed for the sake of tonight's entertainment when my father has already graciously planned out something special for tonight." Jareth turned his attention away from Tavin's sour expression to his father, hoping with all his might that he would agree with him for Mavid's sake.

Thankfully Hamold did indeed seem to. "I trust you will still find the prepared entertainment to your liking, Tavin, and the conjoined liking of the council and audience present. If you wish to take your seat I will have it brought in."

Tavin slipped his own expressionless masquerade back into place even though Jareth could practically hear the male pouting as he retook his seat.

His father nodded to Erib, who made his way over to the door, opening it just a crack to signal something before stepping back out of the way. Two servants came into the room, dragging between them a bound woman who had although been docile enough a moment ago, struggled anew when her frightened eyes fell on the gathering of the room. Jareth placed a firm hand on Sarah's shoulder, pulling her against his side despite her rigid resistance as the bound woman was dragged to the center of the circle and dumped unceremoniously on the floor before them.

Her fear and anguish were so thick that Jareth could practically feel it on his tongue like it was a delicacy. He knew that the other fae in the room no doubt could taste it too, some even savoring it. The female on the floor, judging by her blue-tinted skin and sopping wet hair, was a water nymph. She visibly shook all over with her fear as she made her way to her knees despite her bindings at her wrists and ankles.

"This nymph was placed under my custody by her tribe because she was found guilty of having attempted to drown a young fae woman who was out along the riverside," the king introduced her, showing no pity whatsoever on his face nor in his tone when her pleading blue eyes looked over to him.

"Have m-mercy," she begged in a small and shaky voice, flinching when Tavin chuckled at her display.

Jareth kept his hand on Sarah, but he found himself completely drawn into the show. Her fear could be felt on the very air it was so thick, causing even his own heart to speed up a bit.

"Your mercies will not be left up to me, Water Witch, but rather yourself." King Hamold leaned back in his seat once more, "You will be asked a short series or riddles, judging on how well you can answer them you will be spared certain outcomes. If you don't wish to participate you will be killed outright. If you should participate and answer the right ones correctly you may go so far as to walk out of this room pardoned. Will you participate?"

Uncertainty and distrust washed over the nymph like a wave but finally, she nodded her head, not seeming able to agree verbally now.

Jareth's pulse kicked up as he glanced over at Sarah. She was sitting very still next to him, her eyes lowered to her lap. The little bit of her eyes that he could see held worlds of emotions within them though. He wondered if maybe she was trying to take herself out of the room, securing her mind in a better place than where she now found herself. If it helped her withstand this Jareth could encourage her doing such a thing. This was sure to be the hardest part of Sarah's night. The restraint in her emotions almost kept Jareth's attention more than the terrorized female on the floor did.

"Listen well to the riddle I am about to give you then," his father instructed the nymph, "For if you answer it correctly you will not be killed for your crime."

The silence in the room was formidable with that of a closed tomb.

"What is found in the beginning, at the end of a middle, and in the beginning of an end?"

Jareth had heard this one before. His father was at least giving the girl half a chance to start her off with such an old riddle.

The frightened Water Witch was trying hard to calm herself, to reel in on her panic as she tried to remember and focus on her riddle. It was a fascinating display to watch what before had been raw emotion get forcefully pulled back on and stamped down for the sake of logic, only to know that depending on how she would answer another vast wall of emotion only waited to crumble and break out.

Living outside of the fae region for so long, and not having been to a gathering like this in roughly two hundred years, Jareth had almost forgotten how pleasurable emotion tampering could be for one of the fae race. It tended to get spurred on more when there were groups of fae like this, but Jareth could feel his heart racing in his own chest just out of the excitement and suspense at the displaying of such intimate emotions before them.

"I- I th- think…" the nymph started out in a shaky breath as she brought her mind to a concluding answer, "B-based on the l-language you asked the question in… I think the answer is… the letter 'e'?

Jareth smirked and the king nodded his head in affirmation. She had gotten it right.

Emotions broke out all over the room, some of the fae giving smiles, some scowling that she should get it right. Even Sarah, who had not seemed to be paying attention, let out a large breath of relief next to him. The nymph just about dropped to the ground all over again in her own relief, tears falling down her cheeks till they made a little puddle beneath her chin. Jareth could just about feel her relief and her agony on his tongue, and more impressive still he could almost feel empathetic.

"Your freedom is not won yet, witch," the king reminded her.

The nymph nodded her head pathetically to show she understood and collected herself as best she could once more.

"Your next riddle, and if you get this one right you will avoid one hundred lashes for your crime, is; what has been given to you, belongs to you exclusively, yet has been used by your friends more than you?"

The nymph racked her brains trying to figure out the answer to that one. Jareth could see her struggle on her face as she passed over several answers trying to think of a passable one. After what had to have been several minutes, she still hadn't decided on a final answer.

"Well?" King Hamold prompted, "Have you an answer for my riddle or not?"

Panic was evident in the nymph's eyes and she had gone so pale her skin had turned from a soft blue to a washed out grey. "I-I…. I don't kn- know… um… my trust?"

A few eyebrows were raised around the room and even Jareth felt a little surprised at that answer.

His father even lifted an eyebrow. "No, the correct answer is, your name."

The girl started to shake all over from her fingertips to her toes and they could see she was working herself up into a righteous panic.

"However," The king, interrupted her. "I find that although your answer was not the correct one, it is fitting with the terms of the riddle since our trust is most often used by those around us. For this reason, I will lower the stated punishment down to a mere twenty lashings."

She cried again out of relief, not caring at all about the audience around her nor the display she was making. It pulled at Jareth's heart just the slightest bit with sympathy and he looked up to have Shayia catch his eyes. He could see the emotions of the nymph shadowed in her eyes too they shared a look of common understanding for the moment. This was the closest to the fae world that Sarah had ever come, it had to be very difficult indeed for her to understand the whys of this all. Around each other, those of the fae had to hide and restrain and push their emotions down till it was second nature and the eldest ones could sometimes reach a point where they ceased to possess any emotion at all. So, a public displaying of real and raw honest emotion like what was happening before them… it was like taking part in a very sensuous foreign dance, almost too beautiful and thrilling to want it to end.

"Why are you crying?" King Hamold demanded of the girl, "You haven't won your freedom yet, and there is one question to be asked still. Save your tears for when you answer it incorrectly."

The nymph practically choked on her sobs trying to hold them back.

Jareth glanced over at Sarah as best he could out the corner of his eye. She was staring at the nymph's shoulder now, not really seeing it as she stared straight ahead of her. Her lips were moving just the slightest bit every now and then and Jareth strained his ears to be able to catch what was threading out between her lips. He had to give up though after a moment. He had thought he had heard her but had surely heard wrong for it sounded as if she had whispered 'zombie' repeatedly to herself.

"If you got it you want to share it. If you share it you haven't got it, what is it?" Jareth's father spoke, pulling the attention back to the display before them once more.

The nymph got that look of panic on her face again. She obviously hadn't heard this one before either.

The room was silent enough you could have heard a pin drop and Jareth caught himself holding his own breath.

"I… I don't know! I don't know!" the nymph gasped. "Is it… faith?"

Jareth fought the urge to react to such an obvious shot-in-the-dark answer.

"No," the king drawled. "The correct answer to the riddle is; a secret. Because you were unable to answer this final one you will not be allowed to go free. You have, however, already won back your life and reduced your immediate penalty for your crime down to merely twenty lashings. After you receive these you will live out the rest of your life, in servitude to the family of the fae you attempted to drown. If you should ever try to escape them you will be hunted and killed, and if they ever should tire of your services you will be given to another family rather than set free. That is all." he dismissed.

Jareth watched as the nymph stopped trying to hold herself up and slumped down to the floor, tears falling from her eyes without care onto the floor, adding to the little puddle she now laid in. Her anguish at the loss of her freedom was tangible and she remained limp as the servants that had brought her in now fetched her and literally dragged her from the room.

"Do we not get to witness the lashings then?" Tavin asked, the disappointment on his voice though his face showed nothing.

Jareth looked over at Sarah now that the entertainment had been brought to a halt as his father let Tavin know that if he wished to see he was free to follow. Upon his attention turning to her, Sarah must have sensed it because this time she met his eyes. Her own shined like stars with the unshed tears held within them, and although it was better contained, her sympathy for the nymph was both alluring and touching.

Jareth tried to think of something that he could say to her, but as she blinked a single betraying tear rolled from her eye down her cheek. Jareth reached out to brush it away for her, but just before his black gloved finger could reach it the tear was snatched from her skin by another gloved hand.

Jareth and Sarah's attention snapped to Dominix, who had moved up closer to them without Jareth's knowledge. Jareth and Mavid both tensed at the advancement, though where Mavid's was probably out of duty to Jareth, Jareth's own was due to the fact that Dominix had both taken him by surprise and taken possession of one of his own wife's tears. In the Underground amongst the fae circles, tears could be considered just as intimate a fluid as that which ran between the legs during arousal. So indeed, Dominix's action was very bold.

Jareth bit his tongue from saying anything he might regret later in lieu of the fact that not only was the male next to him older and more powerful, but he was also a council member and could make life very difficult for Jareth and his family if he wished. And right now, he just happened to have say on whether Sarah could continue to be Jareth's queen.

"How touching that your human bride should feel sorry for a criminal receiving punishment," Dominix commented, continuing to balance Sarah's tear on the tip of his gloved forefinger.

Jareth looked around to find that indeed the whole room had turned its attention to the exchange going on currently between the three of them and that Tavin had indeed stayed in the room.

Sarah's gaze was locked on that of Dominix and Jareth fought to hold himself very still and not pull her away. There was no way of knowing what the male had planned at any moment. At times, he was just as dangerous to cross as any other of the members of the council.

Dominix kept his baby-blue gaze on Sarah as he brought the tear on his finger up for her to see. "May I taste of you?" he questioned.

Jareth could have tricked someone into thinking he had succumbed to rigor mortis at that moment. Dominix was certainly pushing his bounds and he had to assume that Sarah didn't know the implications of such a gesture and there was no way for Jareth to explain it to her now at the present time.

Sarah frowned at such an odd question being pressed to her, and although Jareth was practically screaming 'NO!' at her in his mind, his heart jumped when she nodded her head, giving her permission in front of a room full of onlookers that included both his parents and the other council members.

Dominix brought his finger to his mouth and Jareth forced himself with everything he had to remain seated as the fae licked the tear off his finger with the tip of his tongue. Sarah's cheeks flamed red and Jareth's blood boiled. What Sarah didn't know was that the exchange that just took place was like to if Dominix had just asked her for a kiss. And she had given him permission!

Try as he might, Jareth couldn't hold himself back from Dominix and keep his emotions from his face at the same time, allowing some of the scowl to show. Dominix peeked over at Jareth from lowered lids as he held her tear in his mouth to savor it and Jareth's rage flared again when the male's lip curled up and he very deliberately made an audible groan as if savoring the taste all the more.

He was trying to get a rise out of Jareth. Even though Jareth could see this now he still had to fight just as hard to keep in his rage. This was another one of their little tests before they made their decision.

Although he wanted nothing more than to react, Jareth forced himself to take a deep breath and lean back in his seat, praying that Dominix did not intend to take this little bait further.

Dominix's smile widened as if reading Jareth's mind and he turned his head to him. "I'm glad you can keep reason when it comes to your mate. Most males cannot."

Sarah sat back in her seat too, not understanding what had just happened, but having sense enough to know that **something** had happened.

Jareth forced himself to turn his scowl up into a smirk. "Every male has their limit though," he warned Dominix.

Shayia's voice piped up from somewhere in the background, reminding them that they were not alone. "Tavin you just might get your wish of seeing two men fight to top one another after all."

"What a treat that would be too," Tavin sighed.

Jareth broke eye contact from Dominix first, as much as it pained him to do so, being honest with himself he knew that the other male was much more powerful than him and cunning to a fault. There was a reason only a precious number of fae ever rose to a position as prestigious as members of the fae council, which presided over all other kingdoms and domains.

Dominix showed mercy and didn't continue his taunting or seek to press Jareth further for his acknowledgment and stood back up to his full height once more, crossing a couple paces across the circle back toward his fellow council members. "Your majesties provide wonderful banquettes, both in senses and feelings," Dominix attributed Jareth's parents, who had kept their expressionless masks in place.

"I dear say the show you just put on just now was just as… compelling as our own," the queen commented. Jareth wasn't sure if maybe his mother wasn't in fact stealthily scolding Dominix for his offenses.

Dominix simply smirked in answer.

"Yes well, the night is getting long, perhaps we should conclude the purpose of our visit now before we go to bed," Tavin suggested, his hand already reaching behind him to caress his servant's clothed groin, who had moved up to stand behind his seat.

"Agreed." Shayia nodded.

They both locked purposeful eyes with Dominix, who returned their looks before holding up the same finger that had stolen Sarah's tear. Jareth watched as Shayia and Tavin both held up their own forefingers as well for a moment before letting them drop back into their laps.

"We're in agreement then," Dominix nodded.

Jareth felt his stomach clench as Shayia and Tavin stood up from their seats and took their formal places facing the room with Dominix, Shayia ending up in the middle. It was her that spoke. "We have made our observations tonight, and find that the human will make a suitable enough mate for Jareth, Queen to the Labyrinth, and mother to any offspring they might be fortunate enough to have. Our decision is made and is final."

Where seconds before Jareth had to rein back emotions of anger and possessiveness with everything he had in him, he found himself now having to use just as much effort to rein in just as tightly the happiness and relief that washed over him with enough force to rival hurricanes. He had not thought they would come to a decision so soon, but being what it was he was pleased with it.

"You find this acceptable?" Shayia asked of King Hamold and Queen Kaleen.

They both nodded their heads.

Jareth looked over at Sarah again, and this time he could see the relief on her face as evident as had been the sympathy earlier. She probably had a lot on her mind right now, and even more that she would no doubt tell him once they were alone, but Jareth honestly didn't care at the moment. She looked exquisite, her body mostly hidden under the elegant dress and furs she wore and a look of relief at being deemed his queen on her face. He didn't know how long that would last. In the meantime, it was all he could do not to drag her beneath him and have his way with her even though the council was still clearing out of the room to be shown to their own rooms for the night.

Jareth made a mental promise to himself that he would have Sarah tonight as soon as they reached their rooms, and that he would have her in any and every way. He wanted to make up for the time that she forced him to abstain from her. Besides, likely she would force him to observe the same promise come her next cycle… so he had to take full advantage for then as well.

X

Oh, and the one servant being named Henson… totally on purpose ;)

note: A 'jigger' is a 'shot' of liquor… what a 'shot' used to be called before it was a 'shot'.


	29. Chapter 29

Chap 29

X

There was a certain stillness in the room after the council had taken their servants and left, one that didn't seem to want to leave. It was very hard to truly stun one of the fae, and the council had managed to leave a room full of them in just such a state. Sarah found it hard to remember to breathe, much less to think. Jareth sat still next to her, staring at her intently like he had never seen her before.

There was just… too much… it all was… too much.

It was like her brain was short circuiting as second-long clips flashed through her mind; the nymph, Dominix, Tavin's proposal, breeding, fortune cookies, slaves, servants, attendants, riddles… they just kept flashing through her mind repeatedly in a random jumble and she couldn't make them stop.

"Well," King Hamold finally sighed, breaking the spell of silence in the room. "That was certainly… unexpected."

"Indeed," Queen Kaleen confirmed. "I had not thought they would make a decision until at least tomorrow."

"Perhaps they did not require that much time to see how unnecessary this whole dog and pony show was," Jareth spoke up, anger now edged around his voice as his eyes snapped to his father.

"Don't be pert, Jareth," his mother scolded him softly, "The council hardly ever does the unexpected. It may not be in your best interests that they have done so."

"Whether they decided today or tomorrow they made the right decision," Jareth shrugged arrogantly.

Sarah looked up when Ishapell's soft voice carried over the brief silence in the room. "Are you alright?"

She was speaking to Torik, who was kneeling next to her seat now, his eyes still wide and his complexion a paler white. She reached out and stroked his cheek reassuringly and he leaned into her palm in appreciation of her comfort. She ran her hand through the soft brown strands of his hair before turning to the king and queen. "I thank you for your foresight in providing adequate entertainment for tonight. It was quite… intoxicating."

Jareth's parents both nodded to her in acknowledgment, only to be followed by yet another one of the king's biting comments about how it would have at least been a thorough lesson and reminder to Torik and Mavid both about the importance of concealing emotions. His harsh eyes shot to where Mavid stood somewhere behind Sarah and Jareth's seat. "You especially should be embarrassed," the king scolded him in front of everyone. "For this whelp of a human to forget himself so is one thing, but you know better by now."

Sarah didn't look over her shoulder to see Mavid's reaction. She had a feeling that even if she did she would see none. But she could hear both the shame and the strain in his voice when he answered back, "Yes, your majesty."

Jareth's mother rose from her seat then, brushing the wrinkles out of her skirts as she righted herself. "I find myself ready to turn in for tonight," she announced.

Jareth and everyone else got to their feet so Sarah rose to hers as well. Mavid, Torik, and Erib all gave her a bow and Ishapell and Clora both curtsied and wished her a good night. Jareth placed his hand on the small of Sarah's back so she had no choice but to follow when he stepped over to his mother and took her small hand in his to raise to his lips. She leaned in when he dropped her hand and placed a kiss on Jareth's cheek. She stunned Sarah momentarily when she leaned over and did the same for her.

Although the queen's lips had felt cold against her skin, Sarah was frozen on the spot more from her shock. She had been taught during her many lessons in proper greetings that when this happened she was supposed to kiss back, but should she do that when it was the queen giving such a familiar greeting?

Kaleen gave Sarah a gentle smile at her obvious confusion. "Do not worry about doing so this time. Next time you may return the greeting in kind. After all, we're going to have plenty of time to grow accustomed to each other."

Sarah could only nod her head dumbly because she knew that if she said anything back it would only sound as clumsy and stupid as she felt against the queen's flawless grace.

The Kaleen moved as if to exit the room, but the king gripped her forearm and pulled her back to him gently enough, whispering something in her ear. Sarah looked on in silence as the queen's lips turned into a slight frown and her jaw tightened, but she simply nodded her head once and whispered, 'yes' in a strained voice.

Hamold smirked at this before releasing her arm. "I shall retire for the night as well."

Jareth took his hand from her back then and stepped closer to his parents. "I wish to have words with you father… alone."

Although Sarah knew Jareth was using a tone that often meant there was absolutely no room for argument, the king paused as if to ponder it just the same. At length, he finally nodded his head in agreement. "Very well but make it quick. The rest of you are excused," he commanded.

Jareth looked over his shoulder to Mavid. "Take Sarah to my room and see that she is comfortable." His eyes flicked to Sarah, "Wait for me there."

As if she had any other choice?

Sarah tried to keep the scowl from her face as Mavid made his way around the couch and over to them. Sarah side-stepped around him when he reached his hand out as if to touch the back of her arm. She was ready to be out of the room, away from the fae and from Jareth and from everything that had just happened. She needed no further prompting to turn on her heel and march out the door. If Jareth minded that she hadn't bothered to give him any kind of goodbye he said nothing.

Sarah moved around Clora and Ishapell and Torik too, careful not to accidentally touch or look at either of them as she hurried out of the room. She didn't pause till she made it out into the hallway, unsure which way she should turn.

Although she had hurried from the room, Mavid stayed right behind her, pausing as well at the hall. She didn't know which way the room was, but she really didn't want to ask Mavid for help for reasons that might be petty, but to her, they were reasons all the same. Truthfully, she found it hard to be around Mavid at all. He was likely the only person she disliked almost as much as Jareth… scratch that, she found she disliked King Hamold a great deal more if she was being honest with herself.

She stayed standing there, not sure which way to go, and stayed silent, not willing to ask for help. She could hear female chatter coming out of the alcove and knew that soon Jareth's mother and cousins would be out here with them as well.

"Which way do we go, my lady?" Mavid asked, forcing her to make a choice. She had hoped that maybe he would just go ahead and lead her out when she had stood there in the hall, but it seemed he wasn't going to let her get away with any such thing. She would have to either admit she didn't know where they were or guess her way blindly back to the rooms.

She could try guessing. "Uh… this way," she said, watching his reactions closely to see if she had gotten it right or not. Mavid gave no reaction but to nod his head tightly and followed her when she started moving down the hall to her right, keeping next to her like a silent shadow.

That thought reminded Sarah of what he could do and she fought not to shudder next to him.

She walked down the hall, Mavid eventually taking lead as they walked to lead her through the halls of the castle. He had to have grown up here too, being Jareth's life-long companion and everything. While normally Sarah preferred to pretend Mavid wasn't in the same room as her even when he stood next to her, as they walked along she couldn't help but glance over at him once or twice from the corner of her eye. Jareth had said something earlier tonight that had disturbed her… pertaining to Mavid. She remembered and wondered about it now.

"Mavid," she finally forced herself to say, the name practically a foreign word on her tongue.

He stopped walking and looked over at her expectantly with those dark blue eyes of his. "Yes?"

"What did Jareth mean when he said something about… breeding? Something about breeding you for Toby?"

Mavid's brows shot up at that. Whatever he had been expecting obviously hadn't been that. "I assumed he had talked to you about that already. It has been discussed between us for some time now."

Sarah simply shrugged, not sure what else she should do. "He doesn't tell me anything."

Mavid rolled his eyes at that before he continued walking, Sarah moving along too. "You wish to know exactly what breeding is?" Mavid asked her, his tone mocking as if to suggest she had no clue what it could possibly be.

Sarah scowled at him, "I'm asking what the point of it is, not what the mechanics of it are. I know very well what sex is," she admitted, turning scarlet as soon as she said it.

Mavid's lips turned up into a knowing smirk that made her want to strike him. He kept his eyes on the floor in front of them though. "If you say so, your highness. All males born into the aristocracy are raised with a companion, someone to learn with them, to grow with them, to take physical punishments for them, and even learn how to protect them with their very lives. Sometimes that companion will be purchased from families of lesser income with limited means, but more often one will be bred from upstanding attendants."

Sarah had figured that that was what that meant, but to hear it spoken out loud like that… she felt her stomach turn at the thought of a child being brought into the world for the sole purpose of being another child's servant. "Were you bred for Jareth?" she found herself asking.

"No, I was bought for him," Mavid answered.

He didn't seem to like her much more than she liked him, but Sarah suspected that he was too good a servant than to not answer a direct question from her. With someone else, she might have worried that she was asking rude questions or talking about something that was painful to them, but with Mavid that wasn't the case. Like reading a dictionary, he simply answered her questions with no emotion and no hint that any of this might be something he would rather not discuss, just giving her the answers as she asked them.

"Do you ever see the family you were bought from?"

"I do not know who they are. Jareth's family has been my family."

"Are you actually okay with this whole breeding thing?"

Mavid paused at that question, pausing in his stride as he looked over at her. "You miss the whole point, my lady," the faintest hints of anger and frustration in his tone now, "It is my _duty_ and my _honor_ to serve Jareth in whatever way he should need of me… two concepts you seem to have a great deal of trouble understanding."

Sarah had to pause at that, shocked that he was judging her in such a way. "Okay, yeah I guess I am having trouble with this whole 'I follow someone else blindly for the sake of duty and honor' thing," she snapped, barely keeping her voice level. "And no, I don't understand how or why you are able to. I hope I never do understand!"

Mavid stopped walking now and turned fully to her, placing his hands on his hips as he scowled down at her. He wasn't as tall as Jareth, but he was still taller than her. "That really is a shame, for your life would be just as heavenly as it could get if you did understand. I serve Jareth without question, not because I was raised to do so, but because he and I have been friends since before I can even remember and although we may not always agree, or even for that matter always like each other, I know that he will look out for me when I need him to and that he always has my best interests at heart. I do the same for him. He is as close to having a brother as I will ever come. There is no one in this or any other world that I feel more akin to. So once again, I will tell you that it is my honor to help him in whatever way I can and that I would give my life for his in a second. Since I'm sure you feel the same about Toby I don't see why it is so hard for you to understand. Or your father for that matter. As a daughter, it is your duty to honor and obey him when he wished something of you but did you not also do so out of love for him?"

Sarah could hardly hold onto the rage coursing through her at being scolded like this, bad enough that he should do that, but for him to bring up her father on top of that… she knew her hands were shaking and so she clenched them into fists at her sides to try to get them to stop. "Don't you talk about my father!" she growled out.

"No matter how much you may wish to think badly of us, the fae do have a very acute sense of love and of family and of devotion. When you feel those things for someone else you don't need any kind of lesson to know that you will do anything for their safety and their happiness." Mavid stepped towards her then, and she instinctually took a step back, only to take another when he came closer. His voice dropped low and deep till it almost sounded as if he was practically growling. "So, when I see someone upsetting Jareth… I mean just making him miserable, I find it very hard to swallow. And even though he may order me to do nothing about it, that can't stop the desire to make everything okay for him again. But then when that someone just keeps doing things to hurt him, intentionally hurt him…"

Sarah's back hit the wall and her retreat was cut off, but still, Mavid advanced, his eyes dark and his light muscles moving under his skin like some fierce predator, hostility coming off him like waves. She had never seen him mad like this before and couldn't help but want to run. As if reading her mind Mavid planted his hands against the wall on either side of Sarah's head, caging her in as he brought his eyes to level with hers, keeping distance between every part of them, even between his hands on the wall and her head. "It makes it very hard indeed to listen to any orders to back off, rather than following instincts that are screaming at you to make that person sorry enough that they will never even think of doing anything so intentionally cruel and thoughtless again.

Sarah tried not to, but she couldn't help but feel very afraid at that moment. She was trapped, and she had no idea what to expect. She was sure Mavid was probably fighting not to hit her right now… or maybe do worse things. She tried not to show any reaction, to look bored, to look anything but afraid.

"I have no idea how Jareth has the patience for you, but he does," Mavid continued. "For whatever reason, he still loves you. But make no mistake that you walk on thin ice where I am concerned. For that matter, you're barely treading the water."

Sarah didn't know what to do, she felt enraged and scared and even though it was the absolute last thing she wanted to do she even felt like she could start crying if this kept up. "You are just like him," she hissed, "And all the other fae, thinking that threats and bullying are perfectly accepta-"

SLAM!

Sarah sucked her breath in deep, cutting herself off and bracing herself so much that she was awkwardly hunched over in her spot against the wall for a moment or two when Mavid brought his hand back and slammed his palm hard against the stone wall next to her head. She didn't scream though, for that she was proud of herself. Where the hell was Jareth?!

Mavid's face was as hard as the stone he had just hit. "Always so judgmental… so superior. Do you really think that your kind is better than ours? That humans are above the kind of things here that you have deemed 'unsavory' and 'barbaric'? I suppose humans never have slaves, or use slave labor at least, or torture others, or kill each other, or even know what vices are? Wake up, princess! Your kind might have laws against it but they are only kidding themselves. It still happens every day all over your world. Jareth and I both grew up learning about humans and their ways, and the world they were condemned to long ago. No race is perfect, but if you insist on continuing to play 'holier than thou' than I shall set you straight.

"Allow me to educate you a little on the Fae world, which you seem to think you know so much about. We have never had a single war and never will. We do not slaughter our forests… especially for the sake of 'progress'. We heal the sick no matter who they are or what they can afford and we allow those who have no more control over their bodies and minds to pass on rather than continue to live a lifeless life. We are known for our honesty, unlike humans who are known for lying, and we are inherently ambitious but we all make our lots in life through our ability and skill, rather than by trickery and deals behind closed doors. Yes, we like our vices, just like humans do. The difference is that we are at least honest and upfront about them. That apparently makes us lesser creatures in your eyes though. So, if you are going to continue to judge us, I must insist that you not do so with the misconceived notion that your ilk is so much more moral than ours!"

Sarah tried not to flinch as he pushed himself off the wall to create more distance between them, getting out of her face now that he had made his point. Sarah couldn't help but wonder just how long he had been wanting to say those things to her. She stared at the wall across from her rather than looking at Mavid. She wanted to forget that he was even standing there, still glaring at her.

After a couple of minutes of silence between them, Mavid collected himself and cleared his throat. When he spoke, the anger was mostly gone from his tone. "You went the wrong way by the way. When we left the sitting room, you should have gone down the hall in the opposite direction."

Sarah looked over and scowled at him at that. "Why didn't you say anything?!" Her tone was harsher than she had meant for it to be, the anger that was coursing through her now trickling out through her voice. She tried to calm herself down lest Mavid lose his temper and strike her.

"You never asked." He replied simply. "And I figured that as long as you were being stubborn and all I could lead you out where we could have this little chat in private. Now if you wish to be taken back to your room you need only _ask_ me."

Sarah felt angry anew at this tidbit of information. He had taken lead after that initial wrong turn of hers, bringing her through countless halls till they were alone and she couldn't possibly find her own way back to the sitting room, much less her own room. It reminded her of countless passages she had read in her fantasy books that warned of people being led into swamps or to their deaths by evil fairies or phantom lights.

Now that he had already misled her once she didn't want to follow him again, much less _ask any favors_ of him to show her to her room. What other choice did she have though? It was either that or wonder around the halls aimlessly till she was more lost than she was already and have Mavid following behind her the whole time, snickering at every wrong turn she made. Sarah smoothed out her anger as best she could and took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. Mavid watched her conflictions with an air of amusement. "Would you take me to my room… like Jareth ordered you to do in the first place?" She tacked on.

Mavid's smirk dropped the tiniest bit but he nodded his head and turned back the way they had come, not bothering to wait for her. Sarah hurried to keep up in her heels even though it hurt her feet even more and her corset made her breathing shallow. He didn't slow down though, and she wasn't about to ask for him too out of sheer pride.

After a few hallways and a couple more turns Mavid turned down a hall and stopped in front of a door, "This one is your room, my lady," he informed her, turning the handle and stepping out of the way once the door was open.

Sarah walked past him into her and Jareth's suit, intent on slamming the door in Mavid's face. But it was to her surprise when he walked in after her, shutting the door behind them. "What do you want now?!" Sarah snapped before she could stop herself. Why couldn't he just go away?

"Jareth ordered me to bring you to your room and get you comfortable. Pick out your sleepwear and I will undo your corset laces for you."

Sarah was sure her face and shoulders were turning red from that. "Y-you can't be serious. Somehow, I doubt that Jareth meant for you to undress me! He got mad before when you got a look at my legs when I kept kicking my shoes off!" Speaking of which… Sarah toed off her shoes, sighing in relief when her feet settled flat on the floor and worked their way through the aches and pains of the switch.

Mavid simply moved over to the closet and disappeared inside for a moment. She could hear him rummaging around, but stayed where she was just inside the door. Mavid came back out with one of her nightgowns draped over his arm, moving into the bathroom with it. Sarah could hear him moving around more in there, then heard water running. She jumped when Mavid came out of the bathroom once more, this time without her nightgown, and headed for her. "I will undo the laces of your dress and corset, then you will finish undressing yourself in the washroom. Clean yourself and get ready for bed." He explained gruffly. "Do you require anything before I go?"

Sarah crossed her arms instinctively over her chest, the thought of him undoing her corset making her stomach turn. He was serious about this! She couldn't think of anything else she needed though and so shook her head.

She braced herself when Mavid stepped up to her, but he was all business as he moved behind her and undid the clasp at the top of the dress's back, starting work next on all the buttons.

Sarah tried to think of something else while he did this, then realized something. "You never answered my question earlier."

"What question is that?" Mavid asked from over her shoulder.

"Are you actually okay with making a child for the purpose of Toby having a servant?" When Mavid let out an annoyed sigh she pressed on. "I know I know, honor and duty and all that… but do you actually yourself feel comfortable with the idea?"

"It is what Jareth wants and it would benefit the prince greatly to have an attendant possessing gifts like mine."

"That sounds like another dodge," Sarah snapped. "So, you would just hand your own child over to Jareth? That is what he's asking of you after all, 'give me your firstborn child' and all! You said you would do anything for him because he is like a brother to you, but do you think honestly that he would do the same for you? That in reverse roles he would give up Toby for your wants?"

Mavid tugged out one of the buttons sharply and Sarah had to brace herself against it to keep from falling back. "He has been a good friend to me for many centuries. As my sovereign, I have no right to ask anything of him, yet he has still always provided well for me." Mavid finished unbuttoning her dress and pushed the sides apart so he could move onto the laces of the corset. "Your place is not so different from mine actually," he mused out loud, "If you were to do the same for him, you would find that he treats you very well also."

Sarah scoffed at that. "He's cruel to me, it makes it hard to want to do anything for him."

"He's not cruel to you. You make it hard for him to be as nice as he wants to you when you are constantly trying his patience. If you were my female I would have beaten you raw long ago for your insolences," Mavid declared.

Sarah rolled her eyes but kept her mouth shut at that. If she was Mavid's female she would have welcomed being beaten to _death_.

He let out another sigh behind her. "If you want him to be nice to you… to start treating you more like an ally, then stop treating him like an enemy."

Mavid finished the laces of the corset, and like always Sarah couldn't help but just stand there for a moment while her air returned to her, sighing in small contentment. Her back was left exposed to the chill air of the castle now. And she could feel a chill working up her spine.

Sarah jumped though when Mavid's hand touched her back, his warm palm resting flat over her skin just below her shoulder blades. She shuddered for a different reason now and stepped away from him, crossing her arms even tighter across her chest both to shield herself and hold the dress firmly in place. She wasn't sure about all the rules down here on codes of conduct between fae, but she was sure that Mavid wasn't allowed to do what he had just done. She glared at him, and although he scowled back, there was a dark look in his eyes, as though he was sizing her up, and his stance was very rigid.

"You would probably be more of a waste of energy than a challenge," he muttered under his breath, turning on his heel to leave. "Enjoy your night, my lady."

"What did you mean by that?" Sarah called out, but he had shut the door before she could finish her sentence and she wasn't about to go running after him to find out.

Sarah looked around the room, all its refinery and its soft colors, and then she looked up at the intricate painting of a forest orgy. This room was pretty much like Jareth in a nutshell, she decided. The vice painting was practically out of sight, but easy to see when you looked at it, and it took up the whole of the ceiling… and it was surrounded by the posh and fine taste of the rest of the room.

Sarah tore her eyes away and went into the bathroom, ready to relax for the first time since arriving here.

X

"Just tell me why you found it so necessary to bring the council into my marital affairs!" Jareth demanded once more, his father having previously stepped around the question twice now.

King Hamold rolled his eyes at his son's persistence, getting up from his seat as if to leave. "I don't have time for this foolishness. Whatever my reasons were, they do not matter now. The council has decided and since they decided in your favor I don't see why you should care."

Jareth moved in front of his father to block the older fae's way. "I went through a lot of stress getting Sarah ready for tonight, so you **will** tell me why and I trust it's a good reason."

Hamold's eyes narrowed in his own anger and impatience. His voice was full of authority when he spoke, "Do not be so impertinent as to try to order **me** around. I will warn you only once and only because you are my son will I give any warning at all; back down or **I will** force you down!"

King Hamold let the tension from this threat hang in the air, continuing when Jareth didn't push further. "She should have been ready to be a queen before you made her a queen. Now if you would move out of the way your mother should be waiting for me in my bed."

Jareth straightened his back a little more. "Have you no shame? And as far as Sarah is concerned, she is already everything a queen should be… all I needed was to smooth out the edges."

"And if I hadn't contacted the council it would have taken you decades before you would finally get around to 'smoothing out those edges'. And no I have very little shame, but I know I raised you the same. If you think I should have shame in bedding your very own mother than I can only assume that it is an idea you got from humans, either your current wife or your last one. Do you also think it shameful when you bed your own wife?"

A bitter thought flashed through Jareth's mind about how he wouldn't even know. "No of course not," he answered flatly, his eyes darting down to the floor so his father wouldn't see anything in them.

It apparently didn't work though. Jareth's father scowled, moving to look Jareth in the eyes. Jareth moved his head away once more. "What is it?" his father asked, the slightest hint of concern in his voice.

"Nothing," Jareth snapped, moving further away from his father, not caring as much about getting his answers anymore.

Hamold didn't let it drop though, moving with him rather than letting Jareth create distance. "What's wrong son? What has she been doing?"

"That's just it," Jareth sighed, finally giving in. Growing up with the male, he knew his father was even more persistent than he was. "She has been refusing to do anything. Tonight, she will, but for the past week I have had to abstain because of a deal I made with her that while she was menstruating I wouldn't touch her."

There was a silence as that registered with his father. That silence was broken after a moment when King Hamold let out a boisterous and somewhat obnoxious laugh. Jareth couldn't help but sneer when his father practically doubled over in laughter. Was this the way everyone who found out just had to react? Even Mavid thought him a fool for it.

"What?!" Hamold laughed in disbelief of what he had just been told.

Jareth simply continued to scowl as his father continued to laugh, trying hard to get a grip on himself.

"What?!" Hamold asked again, laughter still managing to spill from him. "You wanted to know why I questioned your ability to pick a wife and this has been going on?! Your first wife, barren, died young- rest her soul, your second wife I needn't even say, and now your third wife won't even allow you to touch her! It's not Sarah that I was judging, it was you and your ability to pick a suitable wife. I see that although the council has deemed her a fitting queen, I was right in my assumption that you couldn't pick out a suitable wife for yourself." Hamold laughed some more after that. "I know of no one with a track record like yours my son!"

Jareth could feel his face turn red with his anger. He clasped his hands behind his back to ensure he wouldn't strike at his father. First chance he got he was going to find a way to make Sarah call off that silly deal. Only two others knew about it and already he felt like a laughing stock. He had gotten his answer after all though; his father hadn't been judging Sarah, but rather him! Jareth was practically sweating from how hot his face felt as the older male continued to chuckle in amusement.

"If you are through I will retire for the night," Jareth spat, turning his back to his father as he stormed over to the door.

His father caught up with him though, putting his hand on Jareth's shoulder to stop him. "You will stay where you are for I am not through with you, I didn't mean to seem so uncaring about your problem." He stepped around Jareth, holding the door open for him to follow. "Come with me, I have something for you," he instructed.

Jareth begrudgingly followed behind his father out the door of the sitting room but offered no further resistance than that.

"How did your female ever get you to agree to such a request?" his father laughed lightly again as they walked.

Jareth swallowed down the bitter taste that his father's amusement left on his tongue. "None of your business."

"Fine then, it doesn't matter anyway after all. I have something that can fix all your troubles with your wife."

The hairs on the back of Jareth's neck stood up at that and although he couldn't think of anything good that that could mean he continued to follow his father through the halls in silent curiosity. Just what could his father think would fix all his marriage problems?

When they came to the door of his father's study Jareth was even more intrigued as Hamold magicked away the powerful locks on his door and let them both in. Jareth had modeled his own office after his fathers, large and fortified, with but one window and a large desk in the middle with one chair on either side of it for him and Mavid, whereas his father's chairs were for himself and Erib. His father went to one of the covered shelves that lined the walls and opened a section up. There were stacks of papers inside, same as in all the others, but when Hamold waved his hand in front of it the papers dropped their powerful glamour spell and Jareth could see what they really were.

In the cabinet were a few trinkets…

Well… one man's trinket is another man's object of dangerous and immense power.

Jareth could see a security crystal situated behind other things near the back. If anyone other than his father was to reach for the things in that cabinet the crystal would explode and destroy everything in there and probably remove the face of who so ever should be dumb enough to try to steal from his father.

Hamold reached in and took out a small object from inside, handling it very carefully as he turned around to show Jareth. Jareth looked on to see that his father held in his hands a tiny little triangular arrowhead that shimmered like crystallites.

"This is what you need," Hamold insisted, holding it out to Jareth. "Careful of the tip," he cautioned when Jareth gingerly took it from him, turning it over carefully in his hands.

"What is it?"

"The tip from one of Cupid's arrows," Hamold explained. "When you prick the skin of your wife with that, the magic will flow through her blood right to her heart and she will fall in love with the first person she sees."

"Cupid isn't still around is he?" Jareth questioned, thinking that the meddling cherub had died long ago.

"Of course not, he was slain long ago for turning his magic against his own kind, using black arrows to make all the cherubs hate each other." Hamold replaced the glamour over the other objects and closed his cabinet once more.

"It's not a real love, is it?" Jareth sighed, turning the arrow head over in his hand once more. "A false love?"

"Better than any love she will probably ever have for you," King Hamold scoffed. "Just use it. You can thank me when she is so besotted that she weeps when ever you leave her side. Do let yourself out. I'll see you both in the morning."

"Father," Jareth beseeched as he started to leave, "One more thing."

His father stopped and turned back to him. "Yes?"

"If you could spare two serving females, ones to Mavid's tastes, I would ask that you send them to his room for tonight."

King Hamold raised a brow at that but a knowing smirk spread to his lips. "What about 'saving his seed' and all that?"

Jareth shrugged, "His seed would be more wasted to his hand than a female or two. He will likely want the relief tonight and if a pregnancy should take with one of them then I wouldn't have to worry about paying the Pixi King for use of his fae attendant."

"Oh, is that who you were thinking of for a suitable match for Mavid's genetics?"

Jareth nodded his head in the affirmative.

"Indeed, well I should think it be no problem to find a couple that is willing… I believe Tam has missed him since you both left home. I'll send her and Addey to his rooms."

Jareth nodded his head, "Thank you, father."

King Hamold didn't take his leave just yet though, "You know, son… if nothing else… there are several servants here that have missed **you** as well. When a female has designs on you to get back at you for something by denying sex, nothing thwarts her plans faster than to find another female for a night or two.

With that King Hamold left his study, leaving Jareth still turning the arrowhead over and over in his hands.

Jareth rolled his eyes at the bit of advice his father had just given him. He wouldn't stoop down to a lower level just to get back at Sarah for pulling a low blow of her own.

Jareth looked back down at the arrow head in his hands, watching as it shimmered with each movement. He had heard of the effects of Cupid's love arrows before, and while it was an exaggeration to say she would weep every time he was away from her, the person consumed by the love spell did tend to act like a love-struck child. Jareth tried to imagine Sarah like that and found it to be hard to picture her in such a state; smiling every time she so much as thought of him, wishing all the time to be in his arms, spending her days fantasizing about conversations they never had and things they had never done. Although it did have its appeal, it was still hard for him to see.

It would be easy enough, of course. For tonight when they were alone in their room for him to prick her skin with the arrow and be the only one there for her to see. There had been stories of couples where someone had been stabbed by an arrow of cupid's, only for someone else to pop up and create a comedy of errors, but those were indeed only stories even in his own realm. Anyone who went to the trouble of gathering some form of love potion for someone else would never take the chance of them seeing anyone else first. And he was no bumbling fool after all.

Still… Jareth turned the crystal arrow over again.

She would love him… yet she would not…

Jareth let his head fall back, closing his eyes against the ache in his temples. With a long sigh, he placed the arrow behind him on his father's desktop and left it and the room behind.

X

Sarah still felt like her head was spinning, but not nearly as badly now. She was now going over the things Mavid had told her more than anything else, though bits of the night before that were still fresh on her mind. She was still in the shower… no, you couldn't even jokingly call it that.

She was still in the waterfall.

When she had walked into the washroom for the first time since arriving, she had just about choked on her own gasp, it had been so deep. Half of the room was normal enough, smooth stone walls and polished fixtures just like the rest of the castle, then the other half was dedicated to a mini indoor waterfall! There was a slight step down onto smooth but still uneven flooring where the water was falling and the other half of the room was more natural-looking rock formation rather than hand-polished stone. Clear water that was neither hot nor cold ran from it to create a mini waterfall that one could stand under to bathe.

Sarah leaned back behind the waterfall, against the water worn stones that felt cool against her skin and listened to the white noise of the water falling, running over her crossed arms in front of her and down her stomach and legs. She had already washed but still didn't want to get out.

She tried to forget about everything and just focus on the noise of the water, letting it completely relax her as it always tended to do. It worked wonders for a few precious minutes, till she heard Jareth's voice call for her from in the bedroom.

She stayed exactly where she was, not moving a muscle as if her life was just a scene she could watch from behind the waterfall, not actually participating. She watched and still felt calm even when Jareth came into the bathroom door, his eyes finding hers right away from the other side of the clear trickle of water. He had already discarded much of his clothing already, leaving himself in nothing more than his shining black leggings and the triangular pendant he always wore.

After a moment of the locked eye contact, with neither of them saying a word, Jareth's eyes broke away first, scanning down over the rest of her unhidden body at a leisurely pace. Sarah had never felt so disconnected from a situation before, she made no move to hide her body, hardly registering that he was even looking at her, or able to see her. She just continued to stand there as she was, the white noise of the water keeping her mind clear of all thought as though she had slipped into a trance as she studied the unique and handsome features of Jareth's face without shame.

"Sarah," Jareth spoke again, causing her to come back to herself just a little bit as she refocused on him. "Have you already cleaned yourself?"

She nodded her head but said nothing back to him, continuing to just stand there. Jareth reached over and took hold of a lever on the wall, pulling it down and cutting off the flow as the water trickled down to nothing, leaving the room quiet and cold.

Sarah wrapped her arms tighter around herself as the chill of the air brought her further back to her senses and it was mere moments before the water still clinging to her bare skin caused her to shiver. Jareth came over to her with a towel, wrapping it around her shoulders and rubbing it against her as she huddled into it, wrapping it closer around herself. Sarah stopped shivering for a moment when he placed a chaste kiss against the top of her sopping wet head. She hadn't expected that.

Sarah looked up at him. There was an odd look on his face, one she couldn't guess at like he was trying to judge her mood and then act from there. He held her eyes as his hands continued to rub over the towel around her shoulders and arms. When his movements slowed to a stop, his hands still resting on the towel on her arms, Sarah became fully alert once more, but still couldn't think of what to do or how to respond, even though thoughts were now shooting through her head.

" _It is easier to resist in the beginning than in the end",_ flashed through her mind suddenly and Sarah turned her head away from Jareth, trying to hide the scowl now on her face.

Jareth let out an annoyed huff, his warm breath tickling over the skin of her neck.

Sarah debated on whether she should pull out of his arms or not. But then there was the fact that she wasn't sure if she really did want to tell him no, tonight at least. It had been quite some time since she had been touched in a truly gentle manner. So much had happened in that time too. It had been about a week since she had gotten to be held or petted or given the sense that she was cared for really. She had been brought up in an affectionate household thanks to her father. Not overly so, but she had always been told at least twice a week that she was loved back home. She didn't have that here. She tried to think of the last time she had been told that by anyone and found that she couldn't.

She must have taken too long to decide on a proper action to take, because she jumped when suddenly Jareth let out another huff and hoisted her over his shoulder in one easy movement and carried her out of the bathroom and into the bedroom without a single word, his arm locked behind her knees to keep her in place as Sarah pushed her hands against his bare lower back to try and keep her head halfway up. It was bad enough that he had decided to carry her like this, but she was completely exposed, much of her skin against his own as the towel lay abandoned on the floor of the bathroom. The air in the bedroom was noticeably colder than in the shower and her warm skin was breaking out in rapid goose bumps.

"Hey!" she shouted indignantly as he carried her over to the bed. She knew right away what he planned to do, and so braced herself as he dropped her down onto the bed with little indication of caring how she fell.

She happened to land halfway on her back on top of the covers. Both her urge to cover herself and get warmer caused her to reach back for the covers right away, but Jareth didn't allow it. He reached out and pushed the edge of the blanket out of her hand, flipping her around onto her back instead as though she was little more than a child as he climbed onto the bed after her. Instead of pushing her legs apart he simply straddled her waist, the warmth of his lower body blanketing her own a tiny bit as he pushed himself up against her, causing her to feel just how ready for this he was.

His upper body felt just as warm and the contrast between him and the cold air caused her hands to travel around his back of their own violation as he chased the cold away with his body heat, the skin of his torso feeling hot against her own skin. She didn't understand how he could be so warm when he was just as exposed to the cold air as she was, although she knew there was a difference in the situations being that she had been in the water and that he was currently very aroused, both things would affect body temperature.

He smirked when her hands on his back pulled his chest closer against hers. she couldn't help it though, she really was cold, and it was causing her body to respond in embarrassing ways, her body practically vibrating beneath him and against him as he pushed himself against her, a deep and feral moan rumbling out from deep in his throat. She felt a tremor go through her own body as well and he pulled back from her enough that he could look her in the eyes, his stare intense as though he could see every thought and concern she had in her head through her eyes.

"Sarah," he spoke, his voice deep and husky as he caught his own breath, "I can't let you go untouched tonight. It's been too long for me to be able to resist you now, but I am willing to extend a proposal out to you on how this is going to happen."

Her mind was far too scattered to really figure out what it was he had just said. How could he do that? With his body flushed a light pink from its own heat and his breath coming out in heavy draws and a wild look in his eyes… how was he still able to think when she wasn't?

Jareth pressed his lips against hers in a brief but demanding kiss before he continued with his 'proposal'. "I'm willing to allow you the control this time," he told her, "I will do what you want me to, and only what you tell me to if the result is indeed that you and I end up together tonight. If you would rather me take the lead though, then say so and I will continue what I was doing. These are the offers I'll allow you, no others. As I said though, I **must** be in you tonight."

To say she was taken aback by his offer was an understatement. She wondered just how serious he was about it all, that she could have control? How much control? Sarah couldn't help but really ponder his offer. With his body pressing hers down into the bed, his arousal shoved against her pelvis, it was indeed obvious that one way or another this night was going to end up going only one way, but he was offering her the chance to decided just how and when it got there wasn't he?

"You will let me be in control?" Sarah questioned when she found her voice, wanting to know more of the specifics. It wasn't the kind of deal Jareth would often make. "You won't do anything I don't tell you to?"

Jareth nodded his head in confirmation. "I will not. I wish to see what you enjoy, what you would do given the choice. You can ask anything of me and I will not tell you no should you choose this option."

"Anything?" she asked in disbelief.

Jareth scowled at that. "Well, you can't say yes and then order me to run down the hall in the buff. It must be an intimate act, and it can only involve us. All you have to do is think of what would make you feel good, and then tell me what to do."

Sarah bit her lip as she thought about her options here. The thought of having say over Jareth in the bedroom for once did have its appeal, but she wondered if maybe she shouldn't just ask him to take charge. The way he was looking at her now, the way he had carried her in here… he would be in a frenzy, and would surely be rougher on her for it. Sarah made her choice.

"I want to be in charge this time."

Something flashed behind Jareth's eyes and his lip pulled up into a smile at the corner. Why did he look at her as though he had just won something?

Jareth nodded his head in agreement though and Sarah was surprised when he moved slowly back from her as if he was being dragged back by his will as he settled on his knees between her legs on the bed, still wearing only his black leggings and king's pendant.

Sarah sat up a little, but he stayed right where he was as if waiting for her first command or something like that. Sarah felt her cheeks heat with a blush and suddenly she wished that she had chosen differently. She felt very self-conscious suddenly and brought her knees up to her chest, feeling very apprehensive. She wasn't smooth or sexy, she realized, but little more than a bumbling teenager and she had no clue why Jareth would want her to call the shots when she had no idea what she was doing.

Jareth recognized her uncertainty and leaned forward, letting his weight rest on his hands on either side of her as his chest came up against the fortress of her knees and he moved to kiss her. Sarah didn't pull back as his lips brushed over hers in a soft touch. "Sarah, don't worry about this, just think of what you want. The rest will come to you naturally. Just don't hold back. If you think of anything that will bring you pleasure just tell me and I'll do it."

Sarah licked her lips as she tried to think about what he said, still tasting him on her lips. "I- I don't know what to say," she answered in shame.

Jareth nodded his head, leaning back a little to place kisses against the tops of her knees. "Perhaps I can help you to get started." Jareth looked up to her then, his eyes full of dark promises as he gripped her ankles gently and pulled them away from her body, making her straighten her legs back out on the bed and she laid back on her elbows for both comfort and some space from him. Jareth crawled up her body once more, planting his knees between her thighs and his hands on either side of her torso. He sucked on his lower lip as he did so and when he released it Sarah couldn't help but notice how soft and kissable his lips looked. He tossed his pendant over his shoulder so it would rest on his back and stay out of his way for now.

"If I were to kiss you," Jareth whispered, careful to make sure his body didn't touch hers as he brought his face down so close to hers that she thought he would for a second. "Where would you like me to do so?"

His breath tickled a light path over her skin as he spoke, moving away from her lips, down her neck and over her collarbone to her shoulder. Still, he did not touch her at all and Sarah shivered beneath him before she could help herself. "Um… kiss… I want you to kiss my neck," she finally decided, even though other parts had, in fact, come to her mind first. But she wasn't about to ask him for anything intimate just yet and she felt like a kiss on the mouth from him right now just seemed too personal or something. Neck had been the first thing that she thought of that seemed halfway safe.

Jareth moved back up to her neck and she moved her head to the side so he could follow her instruction. Only his lips contacted her skin and when they did her body bucked and pleasure shot through her brain at the anticipated feel of it. His lips kissed her neck, chastely at first, but he came back to it with a vengeance… locking his lips around the hollow of her neck he sucked gently at her skin, occasionally pulling back to run his tongue over her pulse, causing little shocks to travel all over her. Sarah tried not to outright moan for her pride, but all the while she couldn't help but make little cooing noises as Jareth's skilled mouth got her worked up.

She brought her hand up to the back of his head in protest when he pulled back, feeling his soft tresses between her fingers.

"Now where?" Jareth demanded, smirking at her distress.

Sarah knew exactly where else she wanted him and was shocked by her own brazenness when she didn't even hesitate to say. "My breasts, both."

Jareth let out a soft rumbling chuckle but dipped his head down to her chest, nuzzling the valley between them before he kissed the taut nipple of her right breast before taking it into his mouth, sucking it into the warmth of his mouth and Sarah couldn't help but arch her body when she felt his tongue come up against her, playing with her before he released her and repeated the act on her other one. Sarah arched again and immediately let her hips fall back down onto the bed from embarrassment when her hips accidentally moved up against his still-clothed groin. It didn't faze him in the slightest though as he continued to hold his body above hers, flicking her with his tongue before turning his attention back to the first one he had teased.

It felt wonderful, and already Sarah could feel a warmth building between her legs and she thought of how good it would feel to have his lips and tongue there rather than on her chest. She didn't think she would ever have the courage to tell him to go down on her… even if she could think of a way to say it that didn't just leave her blushing. Instead, she brought her hands to his shoulders, rubbing them and feeling both the smoothness of his skin and the flexed muscles that rolled underneath as he supported himself over her, sucking now on the side of her breast before his tongue flicked once more around her hardened bud.

She gasped in the pleasure it shocked through her as she pushed down on his shoulders, wordlessly telling him where to go next. It was all rather thrilling … to for once be able to tell Jareth what to do and know that he had promised to obey her for a change. She had power over him! He followed the direction she pushed him in without question, drawing his lips away from her chest and placing light kisses down the skin of her stomach and hips as he moved down her body, resettling himself between her legs, still careful that his lips were all that touched her, folding his arms up under his own chest as if to make sure he wouldn't touch her outside of what she asked him for.

"Here?" he questioned, his eyes locked on the flesh presented to him.

Sarah spread her legs a little wider for him. When he didn't seem to take that as his answer though she was forced to speak. "Yes, kiss me there."

"Oh, is that all?" Jareth sighed, dipping his head down.

Sarah arched her back in preparation for the pleasure she was sure to receive, only to find herself disappointed and confused when Jareth simply placed a chaste kiss against the outer folds of her sex, pulling his head back to gauge her reaction.

She scowled down at him.

He chuckled at her expression of distress. "You told me to kiss you there, and I did. What is the problem sweet? Did you want something more?"

"You know what I meant," she muttered scornfully.

"Did I?" He asked, clearly playing dumb. "Apparently not since you don't seem very pleased with me. But if you wish for me to give you pleasure that is more to your liking you need only tell me exactly how I can do so."

Her body was already worked up enough that it was practically singing for more, and his lips were so close to her, mere centimeters over the part of her that screamed the loudest to be touched. Did she want more…? Yes.

Sarah realized that by putting her in charge Jareth had forced her into a position where she now had to admit that not only to herself but to him as well. Inside herself, Sarah's pride and body screamed at each other, and it was as if her brain was just sitting back to watch the fight, offering up no help with any kind of sense.

"I want you to lick me okay?!" she spat out at him, growing frustrated and impatient. "I want you to use your tongue on me, Jareth. You knew how to use it on the rest of my body," she tacked on in frustration.

Jareth let a slow and lazy smile come to his face at her agitated demands, but none the less, Sarah watched as his head lowered to her. Sarah looked up at the mural on the ceiling above and a gasp tore itself from her lips when she felt Jareth's hot tongue slide down over the moist slit of her lips, sliding back up over them slowly before hitting her clit, at which point his tongue backtracked to go over it again. His head started to rise as if to stop, but Sarah reached down before she could stop herself to grip his hair in her hands, keeping him from pulling away. "No! Keep doing that, please!"

Jareth's tongue slid over her again in answer and did so repeatedly in slow and deliberate strokes.

"Can you… can you hold my legs up for me?" she asked, her legs tiring from holding themselves out.

Jareth didn't even pause in his lapping as he unfolded his arms from under himself, moving them to either side of her hips so that her legs could better rest on his shoulders. As he continued to run his tongue over her the heat in her started to build and wave after little wave of pleasure coursed through her. She noticed his hands resting on the bed on either side of her, still careful not to touch her. She wanted him to though, wanting to feel his strong hands on her body as he pleased her. Sarah reached out and grabbed his wrists, pulling his hands up to rest on her stomach, his arms practically circling her legs now.

Jareth's hands instantly moved against her skin, as if feeling the smooth warmth of her before they clamped down on her hips, holding her in place as he started to assault her more vigorously with his tongue, flicking it faster and pressing it against her harder as he circled her clit mercilessly.

Sarah was breathing heavy now and her hips were rocking against him of their own violation as the heat turned into a pressure that built up inside of her, threatening to explode at any minute, but as soon as she reached some sort of zenith she found herself falling back from it, trying again to ride the waves of pleasure to orgasm as she tensed her body again and waited for it to hit her, Jareth's tongue working her hard the whole time. She fell back from the orgasm again before it could hit her though.

For some reason, she just wasn't getting quite there. She needed… something else, some sort of catalyst to help drive her over the edge. She looked down at Jareth frantically. Listening to her body to figure out what it needed. "Jareth," she gasped out, "I- I need you t-to use your fingers, I want to feel you in me as you lick me."

Jareth didn't play dumb now… smart on his part… and brought one of his hands down from her hips, moving the other to use his forearm to press down on her stomach to hold her in place as he inserted two fingers into her, pumping them into her in a steadily increasing rhythm.

That was enough for her, the heat building back up all on its own as she felt his fingers moving inside her, filling her as his tongue rolled over her slit in long steady strokes.

The orgasm hit her with force and Sarah cried out as it rocked her body, causing her to spasm as her body pulsed around Jareth's fingers. She writhed under his touch as the orgasm sent shocks all through her from the tips of her fingers to the tips of her toes, her moaning starting to subside slowly as she slowly came down off her high.

It was only a matter of seconds though, before she was writhing again, this time not from orgasm, but from sensations so extreme she didn't know what to think of them as Jareth continued to lap at her now overly sensitive flesh, having not been told to stop. It was kind of like being tickled in that Sarah had no idea if it hurt or felt good. It just felt… too intense and she moved to get away from him as her body bucked against him, but his arm on her lower abdomen held her firmly in place as he continued.

Sarah continued to moan and mew and buck and squirm till she could stand it no longer, finally telling him to stop.

"I'm too tender, J-Jareth! No more!" she panted as she tried to settle more off her orgasm.

Jareth did as she asked, a sly grin on his face as he pulled back, watching her catch her breath as she laid there in the aftershock. Despite that she had told him no more, Jareth still pressed one last kiss against her tender flesh, smirking again when she involuntarily bucked at the contact.

She felt like she was floating on her own little cloud as she regained her breathing, but just as the pleasure from the orgasm faded she realized that she didn't feel quite sated yet. She wanted more… needed to feel more…

Jareth's fingers had been nice to spur her orgasm, but they just didn't feel quite the same as his shaft. She didn't get the same feeling of being filled as she did when his cock was in her, his hips pistoning against her. She suddenly felt very empty at the remembrance of it, and it had been a while since she had felt it. And this time she **wanted** to feel it, to feel him inside her while she was still sensitive from what had just happened.

"Jareth," she said, grabbing his attention. He raised his eyes up to hers as her hips started to rock slightly once more. "I want you inside me," she said, sounding a little unsure even to her own ears. Was she really asking him to do this? It wasn't necessarily that she wanted him, but she did want the pleasure right now, and if she had to ask to get it that didn't seem so hard to do now.

Jareth's eyes darkened and he rose back up onto his hands and knees, his leggings now stretched to their limit under the strain of holding in his arousal. Sarah sat up enough to reach down to the waistband of his leggings, her lips coming up against his shoulder as he knelt over her. She could hear him inhale her scent as he turned his face into her hair, and she hooked her fingers in the band, giving them a small tug. "Off," was all she said and all she needed to say.

Jareth sat back on his haunches and slipped off his leggings with more ease than what should have probably been possible without the use of magic, but for all Sarah knew maybe he had used some magic in doing so. His cock was now free and hanging heavy from his hips, the skin stretched tight over it and Sarah felt herself grow even wetter at the anticipation.

"How do you want this Sarah?" Jareth asked, his dark eyes intense and his body coiled tight as if he were holding himself back from her.

Sarah thought about it for a moment. "I want it from behind," she finally decided, feeling empowered by the fact that she would get to decide even that. She turned around on her hands and knees, smirking to herself when Jareth quickly moved up behind her, his erection coming against the cheek of her ass. As he positioned his knees and she dropped down to rest on her elbows in front of him.

Jareth reached around her and ran his fingers over her slit, opening her up more for him and hitting the still sensitive clit, causing her to gasp as he positioned himself at her entrance. Sarah braced herself.

"Fast or slow?"

Sarah licked her lips in anticipation. "Slow… then fast. And Jareth?"

"Yes?" he purred from over her shoulder, steadying himself by placing his hands on her hips.

Sarah's cheeks flamed with color and she was glad she didn't have to look at him as she said this. "I- I want you to go kind of hard." It was what she was used to from being with Jareth, and right now she wanted it.

She had barely taken another breath when Jareth suddenly sunk himself deep into her, the orgasm from before having lubricated her enough to allow him to slide in easily enough, but it had also made her walls tighter and they could both feel the difference as he pushed his way in her, a growl spilling out from between Jareth's teeth as his jaw clenched at the feel. It had left her wet, tight, and very sensitive and she could feel him more clearly than in the past as he thrust into her, that first time sending pleasure through her in what she could have sworn was a mini-gasm.

Sarah braced herself back against him as he slid out, only to ram back into her again before slipping into a steady pace, his hips hitting the cheeks of her ass with every thrust. It was only a few pumps before he settled into a pace that was much faster and more to their mutual liking, his hips hitting her with more force now that threatened to send her shooting up the bedspread, but she pushed back against him in return and held her ground, the feel of him sliding in and out of her intense as she clenched around him.

Jareth let out a hiss as she did this and rocked into her harder. "Gods!" he gasped. "It feels like it's been forever."

Sarah said nothing but had to agree as his pumping cock left her tingling all over with pleasure, angling her hips up so he could go even further into her, sliding against something inside her in just the right way as a familiar heated pressure built inside of her. Jareth's hands dug into her hips as he pumped into her, his breathing labored but his rhythm steady and hard.

He unrepentantly reached out and gripped a handful of Sarah's hair painfully, pulling her head back in a way that prevented her from muffling her moans at all. The shocks of pain from her scalp traveled down her spine to meet the shocks of pleasure from what Jareth was doing to her and she couldn't help it as moans of pleasure escaped her, practically filling the room as Jareth started to make some harsh noises of his own in the back of his throat and Sarah knew he was close as he started to slam recklessly into her with abandon. "Come for me," he demanded of her, giving a sharp jerk on her hair.

That was all it took and Sarah once again convulsed around him as she tensed with her orgasm, feeling wave after wave crash over her and she could feel herself tighten around Jareth at the same time as he let out a roar and faltered in his thrusting, his shaft pulsing against her own convulsions as he came inside of her.

Her breath left her in harsh pants as Sarah tried to collect herself, her body shuddering from both the aftershock and the strain of holding herself up. When Jareth's weight started to lean on her as well, she allowed herself to drop down onto the mattress on her front. Jareth stayed with her as she spread out and she could feel his heartbeat against her back as he rested on top of her, his head cradled against the back of her shoulders and his arms lining both sides of her body, his lower body still between her legs and Sarah shuddered again when she felt him slip out of her.

Without the distraction of sex, her mind was free to wander once more. This time though, she didn't think about the dinner or the events that followed, or even what had happened with Mavid. Those things she hoped to either forget entirely or she could deal with them later. Right now, she focused on the sex they had just had… and she couldn't help but feel defeated in a way.

Sarah realized only now that for this to have gone anywhere, she couldn't have just laid back and let what happens happen. She had to participate in this, and everything would be by her own choosing. She couldn't help but scowl more deeply at Jareth as her brain finally started to make the connections. By putting her in charge like this, having her make all the calls, it stripped away all thoughts she could ever have that any of this was done unwilling on her part, that she was forced into any of this. He had already told her how this would end up was already set in stone, but she realized now that she could have just ordered him to screw her quickly and get it over with, not draw it out with requests of foreplay and feelings of liking what he was doing and wanting more. She would have been better off to have him take the lead.

She should have let him take control. But she didn't. She instead took the option that demanded she participate. The power she had felt from it during was short lived… for even though Jareth had done everything she had told him to, in doing so she had done exactly what he had _wanted_ her to. It made her head spin to realize just how crafty he was. In handing her the reins she hadn't even noticed he had slipped them right over her own head.

She felt Jareth let out a sigh on top of her and he pulled himself back off her body, leaving her exposed to the cold of the room. He reached out and gripped her shoulder, but Sarah rolled over of her own violation, moving to lay on her back. The look of triumph on his face made her practically want to scream. She glared up at him before turning her head to the wall, unable to meet his smug gaze.

"You bastard," she hissed.

Jareth might have gotten angry, but he seemed only amused as he laid himself out once more on Sarah, his body now pressing against the front of hers and she closed her eyes as if she believed that if she couldn't see him then he wasn't there.

He was there though, his lower body nestled between her legs once more, his arms crossed over her chest as he rested his chin on the back of his hand, staring up at her intently. She didn't have to open her eyes to know he was still smirking. "I assure you, I am nothing if not a legitimate issue." he moved his arm out of the way briefly so he could place a kiss against her nipple once more. Sarah tensed, trying to hold herself rigid rather than react with any favor to the still-pleasing touch. "Don't be cross with me, Sarah. After all, you enjoyed it too."

Of all the-

Sarah snapped her head back around to glower down at him. "You said you would let my friends out of their cells yet tonight if I pulled off this stupid meet and greet with the council. Have you done so yet?" she snapped.

Jareth rolled his eyes but kept his languid position on her, seeming to have no intent on getting up just yet. "Is it really so important that it happens tonight?"

"It is important that it happens this instant!" Sarah hissed back. "You promised!"

The smirk left Jareth's face and he scowled down at her. "Honestly, we just had sex and those disgusting balls of fluff and warts are the first things on your mind?"

"Maybe sex with you is where I got the reminder," she bit out hatefully.

Jareth continued to scowl down at her. "You can search every inch of my body and you will find neither fur nor warts and you know it. I welcome you to look though."

She had been hoping to really get his goat with the remark she had made and felt even more pissed at him upon seeing that it hadn't affected him at all the way she had hoped. "Are you going to keep your promise or not?"

Jareth pushed himself up from her, resting back on his knees as he flicked his wrist around, a crystal appearing as he turned his hand. He rolled the crystal around the tips of his fingers and allowed it to roll down the back of his hand and down his arm, elbowing it away and Sarah watched as the crystal traveled by itself through the air and out the window. "There it is done," he huffed but didn't offer to elaborate.

Sarah gave him one last scathing look before attempting to roll on her side so she could go to sleep for the night.

Jareth rolled her back over onto her back though, settling himself on her once more. "Not even a thank you?"

Sarah bit down on her lip. Thank him… honestly? She wasn't even that surprised that he thought he deserved thanks for doing what he should have already done. "I have nothing to say to you."

Jareth smirked once again at that, surprising her. "I find that actions speak louder than words anyways."

He was already hard again and with the way he had already positioned himself between her legs, there was no way for Sarah to stop him before he plunged into her once more.


	30. Chapter 30

Beta for this chapter is ASunInWinter.

X

"Quit sulking Sarah. I don't appreciate it." Jareth growled out, glaring daggers from the seat across from her.

She didn't care if he wanted to be upset with her, she was pissed at him!

She continued to sit in her seat, arms crossed over her chest as she glared out the window of the carriage. They were on their way back to the labyrinth… something that she might have been happy about till this morning. Now she just wanted to scream from her frustration. No, never mind the screaming… she wanted to kick Jareth hard enough to break his kneecap.

She kept her arms crossed tightly across her chest to keep the urge to hit something under control, grinding her teeth together to keep from speaking. They were almost hom- to the labyrinth - and she had been like this the whole way since leaving the Devine Castle.

If there was anything she could complain about (and there was plenty) she at least couldn't complain about ever being bored here. There were too many surprises in her freaking life.

She had gotten plenty of them just this morning before they left. Like the surprise she got when she found out that they would be coming back in just thirteen days for some sort of celebration ball in honor of Jareth's marriage to her! Jareth had sworn up and down to her that he had not been previously aware of it, and that it was his mother's doing. Although she was willing to believe that, and believe him when he insisted he was no happier about it than she was, Sarah didn't care either way.

And of course the queen had invited the members of the council to that as well. Unwelcome surprise number two.

Then as they had been leaving Jareth had asked his mother if she would consent to keeping Toby with them for a day or two, to which she couldn't have looked happier about. It had taken everything Sarah had not to openly scowl, especially when Kaleen had taken her grandson in her arms and said to him 'you are a gorgeous little prince and everything you want you deserve!'. A shudder had shot up Sarah's back and she wondered if maybe that was some sort of clue as to how Jareth had become the way he was. Sarah kept telling herself that she was putting up with all this madness for Toby's sake, but then she inevitably never got to spend the time she wanted with him. So she had been in the sourest of moods by the time they had finally clambered into the carriages, minus Toby and Tallia.

She should have known it wasn't to be a good morning though when she had woken up and the first thing she noticed was that she was rather sore between her legs from the previous night, which made the carriage ride back all the more enjoyable. Last night Jareth had gone after her probably three times before even attempting to fall asleep, then she had woken up again in the early hours of the morning to his once-more-roving hands. His libido was in overdrive or something.

There was at least one good surprise to come out of this morning though; Rally would not be accompanying them back to the castle, her 'services being no longer necessary'.

Sarah could readily agree to that.

She didn't even glance away from the window when Jareth let out a sigh and sat forward in his seat, "I would think you'd be more happy than this to be going home. Or did you enjoy the rigid constrictions of my parent's castle?" he asked her snidely.

"If I said I hated it there would I still have to go back for that stupid debut ball?" Sarah snapped angrily. "Why did you allow Toby to stay there… with _them_?" she seethed.

Jareth reached for her at that, gripping her chin firmly in his hand before turning her to face him so there was no way she could miss the anger flashing around his eyes. "They are my parents Sarah, my son's grandparents, and I'll remind you that as my wife that makes them your mother and father-in-law as well. Little Jareth is more than safe with them."

It wasn't Toby's safety that she was worried about, so much as she was worried that spending time with the king and queen would only help warp his mind in the same way that Jareth's and Mavid's were. She didn't say that out loud though, knowing that it would only make him a lot madder. As it was he still hadn't let go of her chin.

"Besides, it will be better for him to be out of the kingdom for the next day or two. Less distracting for both of us."

Sarah frowned but he refused to allow her to pull away, tightening his grip on her chin. "What do you mean?" she asked, her voice full of suspicion and distrust. As if there was anything in her life that she _didn't_ want to be distracted from.

Jareth's lip pulled up into a grim smirk that sent a shiver down Sarah's spine. He released her at last leaning back in his chair once more. "I of course need to take care of the work that I wasn't able to do while away from the labyrinth, and you will have to start learning some of your own responsibilities as well."

She was going to push the matter, but didn't get the chance when the carriage jumped slightly as the Pegasus ponies landed on the ground outside the castle. After being surrounded by the posh marble and propriety of the castle of the Devine City, the castle at the center of the labyrinth looked even more dark and foreboding than ever before. In the same way it also looked more appealing to her than ever before. Maybe it wasn't to the level she was used to, but after being elsewhere Sarah felt like she could relax a lot more here.

She was kind of excited to be back now actually, for now her friends wouldn't be in their little cell anymore… assuming Jareth kept his word. She couldn't wait to see them. She wasn't as upset with Ishapelle anymore for ratting her out to Jareth (only because it had turned out in doing so she had saved her life) but she still wasn't on speaking terms with her yet and she no longer trusted Clora anymore. She was running low on friends, which here in the Underground was a resource she had extremely limited access to.

Once the carriage came to a stop Sarah didn't even wait for Mavid to come around and open the door, opening it herself and hopping out, enjoying the chance to stretch her legs out and not caring if it upset Jareth in the slightest. When she turned around though, he was hardly even paying attention to her, much less looking angered or annoyed. He was actually speaking off to the side of the carriage to Mavid, who had opted to leave the luggage for Torik to deal with.

Mavid's blue eyes flicked over to her a couple times, leaving her to suspect Jareth might be talking about her, but she did her best to just ignore them both as she walked idly around the grounds in front of the castle. It seemed to still be in one piece, which was good. She hoped that Aboris hadn't had too much trouble with the goblins in their absence.

She turned when she heard footsteps approaching her, surprised when she saw Clora was walking up to her, a slight scowl on the females face. "Back to the lap of luxury right Sarah?" she sighed sarcastically, trying to make conversation for reasons Sarah didn't even care to guess at.

Sarah ignored the female instead, walking around a little more, but to her surprise Clora started walking with her. "So how did you like the grandeur of the fae kingdom?"

Sarah snorted at that. "Kingdom? If you hadn't noticed all I saw was the castle, not the kingdom."

"That's the important part though," Clora said dismissively, like she had been silly to even point out such a fact. How had she ever liked this female? Clora truly wasn't acting any different from her usual self, which Sarah had found charming about the female not so long ago. Maybe she was just growing up; Sarah shuddered at the thought. "You got to meet your in-laws after all, not to mention see what real aristocracy life is like. Kind of makes this castle seem shabby in comparison don't you think?"

Sarah scowled at Clora then. "Did you want something?" she demanded, wondering why Clora was talking to her all of a sudden.

"Why Sarah, I'm only trying to be nice to you," she said, acting hurt by Sarah's suspicion. "After all, you'll no doubt need a bit of kindness soon enough."

"What are you going on about?" Sarah snapped.

Instead of answering, Clora simply smirked and strolled away, finally leaving Sarah in peace. As her eyes followed the female on her way back over to the carriage though, Sarah couldn't help but notice a few things… like how Ishapelle was actually working hard to not make eye contact with her and Jareth was no longer talking to Mavid, but instead watching Sarah through narrowed eyes. What made her the most nervous though was the smug smirk on Mavid's face as he stared at her too.

Once her attention turned to him, Jareth broke away from the carriage and headed over to her, his walk slow but purposeful and Sarah felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand up as he drew close. She couldn't gauge his expression enough to be able to tell if he was mad at her or something.

"What is it?" Sarah asked, surprised when her own voice came out level.

Jareth didn't answer her, his eyes taking in their surroundings even though between the few weeds that grew from the dirt and the crumbling outer gate of the castle there wasn't much to take in. "You may wander around within sight for a few more minutes if you wish," he simply informed her.

Sarah looked around her warily. "Did… did I do something wrong? Everyone is acting strange." _Including you_ , she tacked on in her head.

"Do you wish to discuss that now, or do you wish to take advantage of my offer?" Jareth asked, his eyebrow raising up.

Her stomach clenched at that and she looked around her again, seeing that there would be no point in trying to run or escape. She wasn't sure she would be able to stand the anticipation of drawing it out though. 'I-I um, guess now. But what have I done?"

Jareth didn't say anything, ignoring her question once again as he gripped her elbow in his hand and led her along into the castle, his jaw set in a grim line as he marched her through the halls. As soon as they entered the doors a pungent and spicy smell assaulted Sarah's nose and she couldn't help but cringe from it. She would ask about it later though, for Jareth didn't seem perturbed by it at all and right now there was definitely more pressing matters at hand.

He wasn't hurting her, but he was starting to scare her as Sarah followed along, unsure what to do since she had no idea what was going on.

He led her through the halls to the throne room and Sarah felt slightly less nervous, having been afraid that he would take her to the dungeons or even the breaking room again given the way he was acting. Jareth pushed Sarah forward inside of the circular room that dipped down in the middle, releasing her arm as he locked the door. She backed off from him right away, going to the far side of the room and crossing her arms protectively over her chest till she knew what to make of things. "What's going on Jareth?" she demanded, goose bumps broke out over her arms and legs thanks to her nervousness.

The look he gave her as he dropped down onto his throne wasn't comforting. "Because of your timing, Sarah, I'm afraid certain matters had to be put off till our trip was over. Put off, but not canceled. You'll forgive me for bringing up the past when we have only just arrived home, but it stands to reason that all actions have consequences. When you act you have to be ready to accept those consequences at any time."

She was officially confused. Well… not entirely, she had a vague idea of what he might be getting at, but she hoped she was wrong. "What do you mean? My timing on what?"

Jareth turned to face her now, leaning against the armrest of his seat "I think you know, Sarah. When you attempted to run away you had chosen the timing poorly, just a day away from such an important gathering. It didn't allow time to rightly chastise you for your offenses. After all, the consequences for attempting to drug your king, going out without permission, and aiding the escape of that renegade worm and conspiring beforehand are all serious violations of both the laws of the kingdom and of marriage. A mere night in the dungeon and slap on the wrist is hardly punishment, but it was all I could do and still have you in any condition to meet both my parents and the council. You did splendidly, but now that is over. It's time you paid your dues to me."

Sarah felt a shudder creep up her spine but kept her back straight and her head held high out of stubbornness and pride more than anything else. "That's not fai- you can't just do that!"

Jareth raised a brow in mock curiosity. "Really and why is that?"

She couldn't think of an answer he would actually listen to, fuming in her corner as she glared at him.

"The fact that I couldn't punish you properly for your actions when they were first committed is not of my fault. But I cannot allow you to go uncorrected on such serious crimes simply because of the timing of all of this." He continued to keep his cool gaze on her. "We have plenty of time now to correct that though," he informed her, his voice deep and low in what could have been the equivalent of a warning growl.

"Come here," he ordered.

Everything in her told her not to, that it would be a bad idea to get anywhere close to him, but an even more convincing voice inside her told her it would be worse if she didn't listen to him right now.

Jareth let out a sigh. "The sooner you comply the sooner we can put all of this behind us."

She steeled up her courage and stepped over to him, even though the going was slow and she stopped just outside his reach, her instincts that were screaming at her to run not allowing her to get closer than that. Jareth snapped his fingers at her to get her attention, pointing down at the ground right next to him once he had it. "Here."

Sarah tensed even more and glared down at the floor rather than him as she forced herself to step forward to the spot right next to his throne where he had pointed. As soon as she was in place Jareth shifted around to sit up a little more, taking hold of her wrist in his hand. Although his grip on her wasn't hard or anything, it was still imprisoning and she knew he did it to make sure she wouldn't back away from him again. "Look at me Sarah," he ordered, his tone surprisingly gentle all of a sudden.

It helped coax her to do so, meeting the ever-intense stare of his mismatched eyes.

His expression was enough to communicate to her that whatever her 'punishment' was to be it wasn't something that he would enjoy in the slightest either. Sarah could hear a shuffling out in the hall and some distinct footsteps. "Before we get down to business, however, I remember that I made a promise to you."

The noise in the hall increased as it came closer to the entrance of the throne room and for a moment Sarah forgot all her worries over her punishment when in stepped Ludo, still larger than life, and Sir Didymus rode in gallantly atop Ambrosius. There were no chains or shackles of any kind adorning them and Sarah broke into a huge grin at the first sight of them.

"My Lady looks lovely!" Sir Didymus exclaimed in awe of her dressings as Ludo's eyes lit up at the sight of her.

"Sar-wah friend!"

Hoggle's voice drifted in from the hall moments before he was shoved into the room by Mavid, who brought up the rear. "Quit yer shovin' ya brute!" Hoggle cursed up at the fae as he righted himself.

Sarah moved forward to finally greet her friends, only to draw up short when Jareth clamped his hand down on her wrist to hold her in place. She snapped her head back to Jareth, who gave her a warning look of his own. "You will stay here until told otherwise."

The hell she would, why shouldn't she say hello to her friends?! Sarah deliberately pulled against his grip, only for him to give her arm such a sharp jerk that it was lucky her arm didn't pop out of place at all.

Her friends of course noticed this transgression between her and their king.

"S-stop that!" Hoggle sputtered, seeming a little surprised at his own courage to having say anything at all in objection.

"Sir, you will not handle a lady in such an insulting manner!" Sir Didymus abashed Jareth as Ambrosius growled softly beneath him.

"Sarah!" Ludo wailed, moving up as if to help her free himself.

Mavid was a lot quicker though, and had already moved around the group to place himself squarely between them and the throne. With just as much speed he had uncoiled a braided but long whip he had been carrying with him and struck it hard against Ludo in a precise and wicked sounding _Crack_.

This all happened in about three seconds and Sarah almost choked on her own gasp as Ludo wheeled back in surprise and pain, a high wail escaping him.

"Do not dare approach upon the king!" Mavid commanded in a hard and cold tone that Sarah thought almost gave Jareth's a run for its money.

Confused and in pain and still concerned for Sarah, Ludo let out a growl and moved to advance again.

"Ludo no!" Sarah screamed, at the same time as Hoggle and Sir Didymus.

Mavid cracked the whip forward again. This time it only snapped against open air rather than Ludo, who had stopped in his tracks at the shouts from his friends. He now stood looking very confused and worried as his large hand rubbed at the enormous welt that Sarah could make out even under his fur down his shoulder. She turned her head and glared at the tattoo on the back of Mavid's neck, focusing on him like she wished for him to catch on fire from that spot.

Jareth tightened his grip further to get her attention. "I have done as you asked of me, keeping my promise to release them… a day ahead of schedule. I think it important that now you and I settle the fact that you managed to turn my own subjects against me, seeing as you have continued to try to do so since this little gaggle."

"I didn't- I mean…" It was hard to argue with that with her friends currently shouting further curses at both Jareth and Mavid.

"They are my friends," she defended weakly, knowing even as she said it that Jareth would find that to be no excuse for them helping her despite his orders.

"I am their king though Sarah, even if you had been my queen at the time they still know better than to follow your orders over mine. And I had already ordered that no subjects of mine were to help you in your quest through my labyrinth without my instruction. These three have committed treason and demonstrated a contempt for my rule and that is why they were imprisoned. They had to pay the consequences for their actions just like everyone… and just like you."

Sarah didn't know what to say, knowing that it would be pointless to try to continue defending to him that they were only helping her because they were her friends.

Sarah looked away from Jareth over to where Mavid stood in front of them, the whip still at the ready in his hands. The braided whip was sleek and black and looked extremely hard and heavy where it dangled behind him. Her stomach turned at the thought of it being used on her.

"It was our honor to serve our Lady Sarah not only as her friends but as _her_ subjects our lives are hers!" Sir Didymus shouted valiantly.

Jareth went very still next to her in a way that Sarah had come to fear and even Mavid looked back over his shoulder for a moment.

Jareth didn't release Sarah's wrist, standing up from his throne to better view her friends. "Do you two feel this way as well?" Jareth bit out, almost too quietly to even hear.

Hoggle hesitated under Jareth's direct attention, but solemnly nodded his head in agreement. Ludo did the same, another low whimper leaving him.

Jareth let out a huff in his apparent anger and threw Sarah's hand away from him like it had just been poisoned. Sarah stepped away from him and clutched her arm to herself, not knowing what had caused him to suddenly be so angry with her. Why did Sir Didymus's words seem to change the whole flow of the conversation all of a sudden?

He stepped away from her and his throne a couple spaces, as though collecting himself. He pinched the bridge of his nose between his fingers, and let out a sigh, but he didn't seem any more relaxed at all as he rounded back on her friends. "The stupidity of your decision astounds me, even for you lot! Do you not see that by being my queen Sarah is under my sovereignty as well? This still makes you three **my** subjects, although your renouncements tell me that I don't have your loyalty unless I place my commands to you through Sarah."

Sarah stepped forward at that. "What? What are you talking about, Jareth. What decision?"

Mavid made a noise like he was containing bitter laughter and although he couldn't see Sarah still cast a glare out to him, whereas Jareth just looked disappointed in her or something. For some reason it was a really harrowing look for her and she wished he would glare at her instead.

"Your four friends here just informally dismissed my rule over them and pleaded sole loyalty to you, Sarah."

Sarah managed to hold back a gasp, but just barely, her heart practically melted at her friends' gesture of love for her.

"Do not be happy with them, Sarah, I promise you it is not a happy situation for anyone involved now. Normally when loyalty is turned over from one monarch to another it is to different kingdoms and so they would have to go live in that one instead. If I don't have their loyalty and obedience as my subjects I cannot allow them to dwell within the walls of my labyrinth."

"You'll banish them?!" Sarah gasped. She had just gotten them back, and now she was going to have to watch them leave her?

"Sarah-"

"No!" Sarah shouted surprising both herself and Jareth. Even Mavid brought the whip down and turned to give her a level glare but she didn't care about him or his past threats at the moment. Jareth couldn't really mean to send her friends away from her like that. "You can't send them away! They still pledged loyalty to me didn't they, so they should be allowed to stay. I won't allow you to banish them!"

While she had gotten madder and madder, Jareth had seemed to simply show more and more exhaustion. "I cannot have them staying in my kingdom simply under your rule because I can't trust you Sarah, not yet anyway, and therefore I cannot trust them. This is just the thing I am trying to teach you about Sarah, all actions have consequences. You must learn this because when you start taking on your queenly duties your actions create consequences for all of your subjects that rely on you.

"By choosing not to accept your situation fully, by still fighting me over a union that has not only been made but also confirmed by the fae counsel, you have shown to me that I cannot trust you when it comes to myself. Thusly, I cannot trust those who are truly loyal to you either, and in that way they are affected by your actions more so than they are by their own. Because their loyalty is to you they are no longer under my rule, but because your own loyalty is not to me I cannot have them stay," Jareth explained in a tired voice, "Do you understand what I am saying?"

Sarah could only stand there and gape. She supposed she could kind of see what he was saying… sort of… but still to _banish_ them? She could see the reason in not wanting to keep around those that could turn on you at any minute with but one word from someone else, but she didn't want to see her friends go. Tears trailed down her cheeks as her heart sank at the situation.

"Please don't send them away," she tried again, this time her anger gone and Sarah knew she only sounded pitiful.

Jareth turned his head away from her and she stepped closer to him, reaching out and taking **his** hand this time, running her thumb over his hand pleadingly as she gripped him and prayed it didn't come to her having to get down on her knees and seriously beg.

Jareth stilled at her touch, but did not turn back to her, like he didn't want to meet her eyes lest he gave in.

"Jareth please," she continued to try, "Isn't there some way you can let them stay… for me?" she squeaked out in hardly more than a whisper.

There was a very long pause in which Jareth still refused to even look at her and Sarah was sure he wasn't going to relent, but then he turned his head back around to her. "You wouldn't like it." Jareth stated very plainly.

"You can't trust them Jareth!" Mavid insisted, looking shocked that Jareth was reconsidering.

"Back in your place Mavid!" Jareth snapped back at him. Clearly not wanting his attendant's input right now.

Mavid cast Sarah one last glare before turning his gaze away and shutting his mouth.

Her friends all watched in silence now, waiting to see what their final fate would be now that it was up to their queen to champion them.

Jareth reached out to Sarah and took her chin in his hand so she had to look back at him. "You would need to demonstrate a loyalty to me over your friends Sarah. And I don't truly think you could do that as of yet. You see, even if I ordered you to do something to prove your loyalty to me—for instance… if I ordered that you yourself whip them all severely for their disrespect shown to me just now I fear you would not do it for my sake, but for theirs or possibly even your own, just to keep them here. Am I wrong or could you indeed do such a thing, not to keep them here, but solely for my sake?"

She wanted to say she could do it, but even if she could whip her friends at all, she still would never do so for Jareth's sake. He was right, her loyalty wasn't to him and as far as she could see thus far it shouldn't be. Jareth was right, he wouldn't be able to trust them around. God, she wanted to just say it though, but then she would no doubt be asked to whip them to prove it. Sarah had no choice but to back down from this one, as much as it broke her heart.

"I thought so," Jareth sighed in disappointment. "That is the hardest lesson you will have to learn Sarah, and it will take the longest to truly learn it as I had to, but as someone an entire kingdom will depend on, you must learn the lesson of consequences."

Her anger at the unfairness of the situation flared inside her and she couldn't stop herself from cattily commenting, "As if you know what consequences are!"

The look Jareth gave her for that… she wondered if maybe the flesh would start to melt off her face. She backed up from him. Without a word Jareth turned his wrist and summoned a crystal, chucking it at her friends like he had been selected to pitch at the world cup and Sarah's heart leapt into her throat to keep her from so much as crying out when they all suddenly gave a yelp and disappeared from where they had been standing a second earlier. Had Jareth killed them in his anger?! Or had he already banished them?!

"What have you done?!" Sarah screeched, advancing on Jareth as Mavid stooped down and picked something up off the floor, handing Jareth back the crystal he had just launched at her friends.

"There was no need for them to hear what I am about to tell you, precious," Jareth answered her bitterly, holding the crystal up enough for her to be able to see the faces of her friends in there. They all were looking around in confusion and didn't seem able to see or hear herself or Jareth anymore. "They are safe enough, and will rejoin us shortly" Jareth assured her, turning his hand over and around and the crystal was gone again.

As soon as it was gone he reached out and gripped Sarah's forearm so tightly in his hand that she couldn't help but cry out, trying to push his hand off of her with her free one to no avail. He carelessly pulled her around him and pushed her down onto the throne, towering over her in such a rage that she couldn't help but to cower back a little. When her friends had been in the room he had demonstrated a lot more control over himself. Now that it was just them and Mavid though…

His eyes flashed as he glowered down at her, his hands planted firmly on his hips. "Would you care to repeat what you just said to me Sarah? Something about consequences? I wish to be sure I heard you correctly."

She very much didn't want to say it again, sure that he had heard her the first time correctly and sure that saying it again would only push him past the danger point he was currently teetering on.

Jareth wasn't letting her off the hook though, leaning down closer and bracing himself on the armrests on either side of her. "What did you say, Sarah, answer me."

"You… you don't know what con-consequences are," she finally muttered, bracing herself for whatever he was about to do to her for it.

Jareth hovered over her like that for a moment more, finally drawing back away from her to simply stand over her again. "Oh Sarah, even now you prove just how badly you need this lesson. I'm sure some of it is to be expected… you are after all freshly out of childhood and were quite spoilt at that."

Sarah fought not to glare directly at him. Was he really calling **her** spoilt?!

"But it won't excuse you any longer. After all I was a mere child when I had to learn that all actions carry consequences, and I can assure you that learn it I did." He glanced at Mavid over his shoulder. "I apologize Mavid, but would you mind removing your top?"

Sarah tensed at that, even more so as Mavid solemnly handed the thick whip over to Jareth to hold as he started unfastening the clasps on the front of his tunic. Sarah looked up at Jareth in confusion, but he offered no explanations as he moved to stand next to her, his hand resting on her shoulder as if keeping her in place. Not that she had any plans to try running right now or anything. Mavid's eyes never once met hers, for which she was glad for as he turned around so his back faced her once more. She stared at the black tattoo on his back, unsure what to make of anything yet.

He unhooked the last clasp, letting his shirt slide back off his shoulders, grabbing it with one hand as it went so it didn't fall to the floor but rather he could hold it beside him. Sarah could feel her eyes bulge and her breath sucked in through her teeth in a wince at the sight before her.

"You see now don't you Sarah," Jareth whispered to her from right next to her. "This was the lesson I had to learn, and the one you must learn now. From the time I was strong enough to hold a strap, I had to accept that the consequences for my bad decisions would not only hurt me, but would in fact do far greater damage to any and all of my subjects."

Sarah's eyes raked down and up over Mavid's back again and again. It wasn't gruesome or anything, but none the less there were scars marring his skin running in all directions from the middle of his shoulders down to the small of his back, and Sarah even noticed one line dipped lower into the hem of his leggings right over his left cheek. They all seemed like they were as healed as they were ever going to get, but nonetheless they were indeed scars and would mark him forever. Tallia had warned her about this once, that Mavid had these scars, but she hadn't expected them to cover his back like they did.

She looked over next to her at Jareth, whose eyes were also glued to Mavid's back like it was the sorriest sight he had ever seen in his life.

"There is a very good reason that the children of the aristocracy are given attendants at very young ages Sarah. The lesson of the whipping boy is the most valuable one we have to learn by the time we have grown into any actual power. While it is important that the aristocracy not bear scars, it is also important that they learn the consequences of their actions. Attendants act as a metaphor for the many people that will rely on those such as myself, to whom we will have a responsibility one day. Every time I really misbehaved or made a very bad decision I would have to punish Mavid for it, so I could learn that when I did such things, it would be the same as if I were punishing my own subjects for my actions. Although I made many mistakes in my youth, as you can see," he gestured toward Mavid's still exposed back, "I was a quick study not to repeat them, nor to take my subjects or those who rely upon me for granted. Those marks also are a constant reminder to me of what happens when I do make bad decisions… that others will suffer for them. One day Little Jareth will have this lesson also. You may cover yourself Mavid, thank you."

Mavid did so quickly, his face completely neutral as he fiddled with the clasps at the front once more.

"You made those marks?" Sarah choked out, the image of Mavid's scared back seared into her mind. Her eyes flicked back to the brand on the back of Mavid's neck.

"As I said, from the time I was strong enough to hold a strap," Jareth confirmed.

Sarah thought about Toby and how he would one day have an attendant of his own… supposedly an offspring of Mavid's… and she couldn't even picture it in her head to witness him actually whipping another child when he was still one himself. She was sure she wouldn't be able to stand actually seeing such a thing.

"Do not think that it is a pleasure for anyone to either discipline nor see the disciplining of a child both royal-born or common. All children are precious in the Underground, especially unto my race. It is, however, direly important that children grow up knowing proper values and obligations to those around them; especially the privileged ones which will one day have more of this sort of responsibility in later years. This sort of system has worked wonders since before my own grandparents were even conceived. It will not change now just because you are not used to it."

Jareth snapped his fingers once and all of a sudden her friends were back in the room again, all looking even more confused than before. Once they seemed to realize where they were it was Hoggle who let his temper get the better of him. "Oh ye rat!" he cursed Jareth.

Jareth did not bother making so much as eye contact with the bunch, keeping his gaze instead on Sarah. "They claim to be your subjects Sarah. As such then it must be you who punishes them when they act out against me. If Mavid were to speak against another ruler it would be up to me to punish him… so that the other ruler could not do a worse job of it. If you refuse to punish them, to take responsibility for them, then that is your choice. Like all your choices, however, it will be them who will pay dearly if you make the wrong one. If you do not punish them for insulting me, I must tell you that it is my right to do so myself."

It felt like her head was reeling as she tried to decide what to do. Punish them? They were her friends, how could she turn a lash on any of them? She just couldn't.

If she didn't then Jareth would punish them…

Sarah looked over at each of her friends in turn, who stared back at her with looks that cried for her help and her mercy. She looked first to Sir Didymus, then Ambrosius, then Ludo, and finally to Hoggle, then over to the thick and evil looking whip that Jareth now held limp in his hand.

She couldn't do it.

Sarah didn't dare meet Jareth's stare as she turned her head away to the floor next to her. She couldn't meet her friends faces either.

"Do you neglect your responsibility?" Jareth asked her, his voice purely neutral.

"I- I won't w-whip them," she confirmed, barely keeping herself together. "I c-can't."

After a long sigh Jareth stood up from his throne, but Sarah kept her gaze on the floor rather than anything else. "By refusing to take responsibility for you, your chosen queen has not only turned your punishment over to me, but has also renounced your claims of being her subjects. In doing such you are all once again under my subjection, and my ruling as your king is in all forms total and final. By insulting me tirelessly and renouncing my command over you, I will punish you by granting your wishes…" Jareth said, all rather tonelessly. "You all are no longer from this moment on my subjects, and are to be expelled from my kingdom immediately."

Sarah's head snapped around as though she had just been slapped and her jaw hit the floor as she gaped at Jareth, wondering if maybe he wasn't serious even though nothing allowed her to think such a thing.

"What?!" Hoggle gasped, also very much in shock.

"Oh, my lady," Sir Didymus whimpered, his voice full of what Sarah thought might just be pity on her. "You mustn't blame yourself."

"Ludo stay!"

"You all will be transported outside the labyrinth and back to the mountains which you came from safely. The labyrinth, however, will no longer allow you inside its walls. You will remain outside my jurisdiction and my protection until such a time as Sarah has become a fit enough queen to indeed have any subjects of her own and decides that she wishes for you all to return to her." Jareth stood up from his throne once more, pulling his gloves firmly back on his hands as though they had slid down. "I suggest you all take solace in my generosity at providing that small light at the end of the tunnel rather than simply banishing you forever." He looked mostly at Sarah when he said this.

Sarah finally found her voice, pushing herself up from the throne and moving for Jareth with her hands out just as Jareth made a crystal appear in his hand, chucking that one too at her friends just as she reached him. "NO!" she screamed in desperation as he let the crystal go, her hands doing nothing more than pushing aside his arm that had once held it and she had to fight hard to keep herself from falling to the ground, dropping down onto her knees on the other side of Jareth as her friends all vanished before her, panic written across all their faces.

Then they were gone.

Sarah stared at the spot where they had been standing for what seemed like hours, but it was likely only seconds as her heart beat in her chest, each beat causing a new ache. She didn't cry though, which surprised her. She didn't actually think she was in shock either though as time was now moving at a normal pace and she could think coherently too. She didn't feel stunned or bewildered or any of the things she would have expected. She just felt sad. And alone. She suddenly desperately wished that Toby was here.

Sarah stared at the floor in front of her in self-pity and waited for tears that wouldn't come to her. Maybe she had run out of them?

As much as she wanted to hate and blame Jareth or even Mavid for this, she just couldn't. This was her fault. She had been given the choice, told what she would have to do to keep her friends. She couldn't bring herself to do it. She just hadn't been able to find the strength to protect them if that meant hurting them in any way. Now they had lost their homes and the friendship with her that they were willing to give them up for.

Sarah didn't pull away or fight him when she felt Jareth's hand run over her hair in comfort. "Don't despair precious," he whispered to her, placing a kiss on the back of her head. "One day you will be the queen I know is inside you, then you will get them back if you still wish to have them. When you are capable of being what they need you to be."

"I didn't even get to say goodbye though," she sniffed, still staring at the floor in front of her while any tears she had refused to fall.

Jareth very lightly touched her chin this time, and she turned her head to look back at him. "There is no need for it Sarah, you will see them again one day," he reassured her sweetly.

Sarah didn't pull away from him even when he leaned in and kissed her lips in a surprisingly gentle manner. Closing her eyes she allowed him to do so and even allowed herself to forget who she was kissing and brushed her lips against his as well, taking the only comfort being given to her now that she had so suddenly lost her friends once more.

Jareth broke the contact first, pressing his lips to her temple before pulling back from her. "I am sorry Sarah, but the turn of events has put off the inevitable for too long already and I wish to get your punishment over with as quickly as I'm sure you do."

She had almost forgotten that Jareth had pulled her in here with the initial intension of finishing her punishment for her attempt to drug him and escape, as well as help the worm escape. A shiver ran through her back when he stood up behind her and she heard the distinct noise of the heavy whip tap against the ground behind her. She had almost forgotten that Jareth had been holding it the whole time.

X

He didn't want to do this, he very much didn't actually. She had hurt him when she had betrayed him yes… but that didn't make this easier for him. Jareth knew he needed to do this though, to carry out the punishment to the very minimum for Sarah's own sake if nothing else. Hopefully she would learn from this so that he wouldn't have to punish her more severely for worse offenses in the future, as was the goal of any punishment he carried out. For the crimes she had committed against him and his kingdom he was entitled to order her death or life imprisonment if he wanted. Of course he didn't have any mind to do that though.

He would be as lenient with her as he was allowed, but she had left him little wiggle room for even that. If it ever got out that she had done all that she had and gone unpunished…

There were those that could demand satisfaction out of her hide that even he couldn't protect her from. So this was necessary. If that ever did happen he might be looked at sideways for being so forgiving of her, but at least Sarah would be safe having been even marginally reprimanded already.

This was the exact thing he had informed her she would have needed to do in order to keep her rag-tag group of misfit friends.

The first time he had been ordered by his father to punish Mavid he had refused too, only to cry hard as his father whipped Mavid till blood was drawn. Mavid had gotten at least five lasting scars out of that one first session. Even though when it was all over his father had held both him and Mavid as they cried and Mavid was bandaged, it taught Jareth instantly that it was always better to carry out punishments himself on those he had a responsibility for, rather than to leave them up to the mercy of others. After that he had always carried out the lashings himself when ordered and although it had hurt him and Mavid both, it had also saved them both from a greater deal of pain than the alternative.

Sarah knelt before him on the floor still, her back to him as she sat there, as if just waiting for whatever was to come. With any luck she would know that same lesson the next time she needed to deliver a punishment onto anyone that claimed to belong to her.

At his hesitation, Mavid stepped forward and reached his hand out to Jareth, offering to take the whip for him.

Jareth shook his head no, seeing the briefest flash of disappointment in Mavid's eyes as the other male respectfully backed off, accepting that it would indeed be Jareth who would deliver this sentence.

X

Sarah let out a deep moan as she rolled over in bed. Bored out of her mind and still sore all over. She was in Jareth's bed… alone. He had left to see to his duties in the early morning. That had been a very long time ago. Outside the balcony doors she could see the sun was starting to go down again.

She rolled onto her stomach on the bed and propped her head up on her hands, ignoring the bruises on her arms as best she could. They were but a few among many now. She wanted to go back to sleep, even though that was all she had been doing all day already. Time passed easier when she wasn't conscious of it. Plus she couldn't feel the aches and pains of her body when she was asleep. She wasn't tired though, far from it. She was amazingly bored though… and hungry… and lonely. She actually _wanted_ Jareth to come back to her.

Sarah looked out the balcony doors again, the only view she had being of the sky outside and the sinking sun. Jareth would be back soon at least.

Sarah propped herself up on the bed, moaning again softly when the bruises on her legs came into contact with the mattress. Although there were only a few of them there, they did still really hurt. The bruises on her back were worse, but again there were only a few, caused by the blows she had received when Jareth had used that heavy braided whip on her. Turned out that thing was designed that way so as not to break the skin, but merely beat it enough to leave impressive bruises and sore muscles. They were healing though, having been given to her… what was it now… two… three days ago?

The majority of the bruises on her weren't from the beating though. The majority were very small and speckled over her thighs, hips, waist, and wrists and didn't hurt unless she pushed in on them actually. Those bruises where from Jareth's fingers digging into her and holding onto her in times of passion. Just one more reason she wanted to get out of bed.

Sarah moved onto all fours, wincing when the cuff she wore bit into her right ankle again. Sarah looked back so she could gauge how much wiggle room she had, but the chain connecting her to the foot of the bed was a very short one… short enough that she couldn't get off of it anyway. Because she had tried to escape, Jareth had decided to get creative with his punishment, keeping her confined to his bed for the past few days and nights save for when she would use the bathroom... long enough to bathe with him and use the facilities at night, and for a few minutes to do so in the morning.

Sarah shifted around so she could sit on the side of her hip, her bum being still too tender to sit on. Sarah looked up and wasn't surprised to see in the mirror above the bed that it did indeed still have one or two defining welts on it from Jareth's crop.

It had been three nights since the beginning of her punishment now that she thought about it.

After her friends had been banished back to the mountains Jareth had helped her strip off her top dress, leaving her in her simple under top and skirt, and of course her underwear. She had then been ordered to kneel before the throne, resting her upper body on the seat of it. She hadn't been as scared as she probably should have been, till Mavid came around and knelt behind the chair so that he was directly facing her through the bars that formed the back. He reached between the bars before she could even think to pull back, grabbing her arms and pulling them back to him through the bars so Sarah couldn't move out of her position at all. That first strike from that unholy whip knocked all the air out of her, but it was the second swing that actually hurt as Jareth aimed them onto her back.

She had tried to squirm of course, to get away from the blunt whip and had managed to get two or three of the blows on her legs as she had twisted about, but Mavid had held tight on her wrists so she couldn't really get away from Jareth. She only was struck about ten times or so and it hadn't seemed even through her haze of pain that Jareth was putting much strength behind them, but each one was like a fist on her as she cried and screamed and twisted her body around as much as she could manage. The worst part of it hadn't been the pain though, or even the humiliation that came with such a punishment. The worst part for her had been when she had looked up through her tears to see Mavid's smug smirk right there in front of her as it was happening. He really was a sick fucking sadist as far as she was concerned and she hated him.

After the whipping (if you could really call it that) Jareth had taken her to Aboris to check for unintended injuries and to discuss diets. It was there that she had learned the reason the castle had smelled so strangely was because Aboris had filled it with a scented smoke while they were gone that acted as a natural tranquilizer for any goblin who smelled it. 'To keep the carnage to a minimum', he had jokingly whispered to her as he had prodded some of the appearing marks on her back.

After he had inspected her Jareth had taken her straight to his room, stripping off the rest of her clothes and chaining her by her ankle to the bed as further punishment. She had thought maybe he was joking at first when he had told her that he would keep her confined to his bed for either the next three days or until she learned her lesson… whichever took the longest to achieve. She didn't continue to think that when the next morning came around and he got up and left… leaving her on the bed.

That day had been incredibly long for her, sitting on the bed just wondering when he would come back and if she would even want him to. At noon she was finally brought something to eat, but to her bitter disappointment it had been Mavid who delivered her meal to her. As she had hidden her body under the covers of the bed he had gave her that smug smile of his again and she had not only refused to eat, but had flipped the tray over on the bed in her outrage.

"You'll be sorry for that," Mavid had simply smirked as he left the room, not bothering to clean up or even take the tray with him when he went.

He had ended up being right about that. Sarah's stomach had growled and roared like the starved beast that it was and when the sun had started to sink outside she had finally figured out that no supper was going to be brought to her. She had spent the next half hour picking her lunch off of the comforter. That had been why Jareth had spoken to Aboris about diets, he had restricted her to one meal a day for three days… or till she learned her lesson. Punishment for trying to poison his food.

When Jareth had finally come back that night he had simply replaced the soiled comforter, informed her of the food punishment and then had proceeded to take her, going about it roughly and leaving those little bruises on her.

Sarah had thought that first awful night was over after that, but Jareth had taken out his riding crop and forced her onto her stomach even though she cried and pleaded for him not to, remembering the last time he had used it on her all too well. The crop was for 'general punishment of bad behavior and disrespect' he had simply said before somberly giving her ten firm swats with it, once again having her count them.

Yesterday had just been more of the same. Except when Mavid had brought her lunch then she had simply done her best to ignore his smirk and his comment about how he was sure she wouldn't be tipping the tray over again. Once he had left she had dug in, her stomach aching for food. Even though she was only given one meal a day she was happy that indeed they were good sized meals and she was able to save her side dish for later on when she would get hungry again. That night after more rough sex Jareth had shown mercy enough to not use the crop on her a second time in two nights, but she had cried hard enough when he had dragged her across his lap and spanked her bare bottom till it was bright red in color.

As much as she had wanted to at times, Sarah had managed to refrain from cursing Jareth out and fighting against him much when he would give her swats before bed. Today was the third day after all. That meant this had been her last day to be chained to the bed and fed sparingly as long as Jareth felt she had 'learned her lesson'. She was ready to do almost anything to get out of this bed and be done with her torturous punishments.

Seriously, one more day and she was sure she would start gnawing on her own leg in hopes of being able to leave the damn bed. If coyotes could do it…

Sarah's ears perked up at the sound of footsteps out in the hall. She had come to recognize them solely as Jareth's by now. She let the comforter drop down to around her waist, hoping maybe Jareth would be pleased if she looked more willing or something so maybe he wouldn't be as rough on her as he had the past few nights.

 _Tonight is the last night for all this_ , she repeated to herself as the door opened and Jareth came into the room, Toby in his arms!

Sarah would have been very happy to see him… under any other circumstances. As it was she slapped her hands up to cover herself, not sure just how much Toby understood of such things and jerked the comforter back up above her chest. Jareth rose an eyebrow at her and she quickly forced the glare off her face, focusing on Toby instead as she made herself smile.

"Toby!" she smiled at him, no longer needing to force herself to do so as he smiled back and waved at her from Jareth's arms. He swung his little legs wildly as a sign he wanted down and Jareth set him on the ground, keeping a hold of his hand as Toby ran/hobbled his way from the door all the way over to the side of the bed, letting go of Jareth's hand long enough to climb up the small raise in the floor around the large bed. He actually attempted to crawl under it too, but Jareth quickly pulled him back out and scooped him back up into his arms, setting him down next to her.

"I had the worst time prying him out of my mother's arms," he sighed, sitting down on the edge of the bed next to her. "I finally had Mavid knock her unconscious and we made a run for it."

Sarah looked up at him at that, but the smirk on his face told her that he was only joking. She found it kind of weird that he knew how to do such a thing.

She turned her attention back to Toby, a smile lighting up her face once more as she pulled him into her arms, ignoring the pain as she leaned back on her butt. "Did you miss me Toby?!" she cooed to him. "I missed you a lot."

She pressed a kiss against the side of his head before pulling back enough to kiss his little cheeks too. After a moment of that he started to squirm and fuss as he tried to pull away from her, obviously more interested in exploring at the moment.

"You want to run around a little son? Hmmm?" Jareth smirked. Sarah reluctantly allowed Jareth to pick Toby out of her arms all too soon once more and set him down on the floor of the room, on the low side of the raised platform of the bed.

"What if he picks something up?" Sarah asked, worried as she watched Toby hoist himself up and start shuffling around, looking up at the large wardrobe that Jareth kept before moving on to the closed and locked doors of the balcony.

"This room is absolutely clean. There isn't anything he can swallow or readily hurt himself with in here," Jareth reassured her. "Besides, if anything does happen I'll go to him immediately." He smirked over his shoulder at her and reached back to give her chained leg a gentle shake. "Since you can't," he teased.

Sarah didn't think it was funny at all and bit down on the inside of her cheek to remind herself not to glare or snap at him or anything. She wanted out of this bed now more than ever since Toby was with them again now.

Sarah was still watching Toby with some worry when Jareth turned his attention back to her. "Did you miss me too today?" he questioned, leaning in closer to her so their faces were almost touching.

She knew what he wanted to hear, what he wanted her to do. What she would need to do to make him think she had learned her lesson. "I did," she confirmed, not really lying as she leaned in and pressed her lips against his. Maybe he had brought Toby in here because he planned to end the punishment just a little earlier than expected. She certainly hoped so anyway.

She was thankful that she hadn't removed the comforter fully before. Besides not really wanting the one she still kind of thought of as her little brother to see her in the buff, she was a lot more thankful that the blanket covered the shackle on her ankle. Even though she was sure he wouldn't understand it at all that she was chained to the bed, much less being punished for anything, Sarah was still didn't want even the slightest chance of Toby retaining anything like that for him to understand when he was older. If there was any chance for him to turn out like Jareth one day it would be in him seeing her being punished by his father and thinking it to be okay; she was sure of it. The more Toby thought that things weren't like that between her and Jareth the better really.

Jareth's lips continued to brush over hers, and Sarah noticed right away when he started to lean into her more, which he usually did to signal it was time for her to lay back. Toby was in the room though, so at most he could only be wanting a little bit of a heavier kiss. She closed her eyes so he wouldn't see her roll them behind her lids and leaned back on the bed, wincing when her ass momentarily ached from the movement and her bruises rested back against the mattress. Jareth followed her back, resting his body against hers as he kept his lips against hers. After a few moments of that Sarah heard his breathing begin to deepen like it did when he was getting aroused and his hand pulled the comforter down enough to cup one of her breasts. Alarm bells were sounding like mad in her head as he ran his tongue over her bottom lip to let her know he wanted her to open up for him. She covered his hand with hers though and turned her head away from him, taking a second to catch her own breath. "What about Toby?"

Jareth hardly looked away from her at all as he glanced over his shoulder at where she could only assume Toby was at this point. "He's not even paying attention. Even if he was he wouldn't understand," he told her dismissively as he leaned in for more kissing, which she turned away from once again. He didn't let it deter him this time though and simply sucked on her neck instead, his hand moving underneath hers once again.

"What if he does understand it though? Or he could grow up to remember what we're doing and actually understand it later."

Jareth was obviously getting annoyed with her as he moved to reclaim her lips once more. He managed for a moment before she turned on him again. "Then he will have witnessed the very natural act of his father and mother having sex. It's highly unlikely that such an act will stop once he actually _is_ old enough to understand it anyway."

This wasn't natural! She was chained to the bed for crying out loud!

"I don't want him in the room when it happens either way though!" she insisted, turning her head away from Jareth once more.

Jareth stared at her for a moment or two… as if trying to decide how serious she was about that right now. He must have seen she was indeed very serious though because he let out a slightly agitated sigh and pulled himself back off of her. He got up and moved his breeches around before going over to the bathroom door, which Toby was currently trying to figure out the handle to, and scooping the tike up against his chest, carrying him over to the bed. "Then say good night."

Sarah was sure she looked as disappointed as she felt. "Already?"

"It is about time for his bed anyway Sarah."

"Can you at least take the c-h-a-i-n off so that I can tuck him in?" she asked, half wanting to tuck Toby into his bed and half wanting to get the heck out of this one.

Jareth frowned down at her. "Your punishment is not over precious, I merely brought Toby in here so you may see him now that he is back. Assuming you are good I will take it off tomorrow morning. No earlier." Jareth turned his attention to Toby even though he continued to speak to her. "It's important to see discipline through to the end once guidelines have been set."

At least, God, she hoped he was still talking to her when he said that.

He handed Toby over to her and she took him eagerly back into her arms, her body once more covered as she hugged him to her. "Good night my sweet, kind boy," she whispered into his hair. She gave him a lingering kiss on the side of the head and another small kiss on his nose.

"Say good night to your mommy Little Jareth, you'll see her in the morning," Jareth cooed, placing a kiss of his own against the back of Toby's head.

Sarah ignored Jareth the best she could. "Can you give me kisses? Give me good night kisses," she coaxed him.

Toby turned his head up to actually look at her and muttered "Ma-ma," before leaning in and kissing her back.

Hearing Jareth call her that sounded weird… hearing Toby call her that was something else entirely. Her heart melted instantly and she felt both sad with the knowledge that Karen was dead and gone from his life, and warm all over from the sweetness that he referred to her as such with.

She felt absolutely stunned as Jareth lifted him up from her and carried him with him out of the room and across the hall to the nursery.

Sarah wanted to get out of her punishment even more than before now that Toby was indeed back. She collected her thoughts once more when Jareth came back into the room, finally feeling nervous once again now that it was just them. He had said that he would carry out her punishment to the end, but she still hoped that he wouldn't spank her or anything tonight, she wasn't sure she could stand it if all he did was use his fingers to snap her cheeks, much less actually hit them with anything.

He came over to the bed and did as he had the previous nights, moving the comforter out of the way and placing his hand over the shackle, removing it with ease. She had tried again and again to remove it herself and examine it while she had been left in here, but no such luck. There had to be a trick to it involving magic or something.

She got up off the bed quickly, feeling a slight vertigo as she stood up and regained her footing on tired legs. Jareth walked with her to the bathroom without saying a word to her. She used the toilet quickly as he tested the heat of the tub and undressed. When she was done she climbed into the tub and started washing so she could easily ignore Jareth completely as he took his turn at the facility. It didn't matter that the first thing she had done upon entering the large tub was wash her body. Jareth still took the soap from her when he climbed in with her and rewashed her as he held her against him, her back against his chest so he could get everything on the front of her before turning her around to face him so he could get her back and still have her pressed up against him.

As sick as it might be, the last few days had been the first real chance they had gotten to form a sort of routine around each other. Sarah was very thankful that starting tomorrow that routine wouldn't include her lying in bed all day waiting for him bored out of her mind.

Once Jareth was satisfied that she was clean he allowed her space enough so that she could wash her hair as he cleaned his own body. Sarah always hurried to wash her hair because once she was done she would get to lounge against the side of the tub and just take a moment to enjoy the warm water as Jareth worked on his own hair. Tonight was no exception to that, and Sarah took the opportunity to relax and let the water caress her body as if it could heal even her bruises.

She hated for it to end, but when Jareth stood up from the water she knew it was about to. She let out a small sigh and resigned herself to get up too. She took his hand when he offered it and as soon as she was out of the tub he threw a towel around her, rubbing it against her skin to dry her off. It never stopped surprising her how gentle and attentive he would be with her when they bathed. And he would only ever grab one towel for them to dry off with, using it on her first, letting her take it from him only to do a final once over for any water he missed. Then he would use the still dry parts of the towel on himself.

Jareth tossed the used towel aside and took down his robe from the wall to slip on.

Sarah stared enviously at the warm-looking floor-length robe with the heavy fur lining on the collar and down the front. She knew she wouldn't get one though. She would have to go back to the bed as is despite the cold chill in the air and let Jareth put that damnable shackle back on her leg. Last night she had tried to offer him her left leg instead, just to switch it up a little and give her right one a break. He had swatted her on her tender ass again and ordered she give him the right one.

Jareth hardly met her eyes at all now, adjusting his robe before opening the door up to the bedroom. "Back on the bed Sarah."

 _Tonight is the last night for this. Tonight is the last night for this_. She kept repeating that to herself as she hurried through the chill room over to the bed, forcing herself to climb back into it and move her right ankle down to the end. Jareth reattached the shackle quickly and she swallowed back the sour taste that it left in her mouth to be chained up once again. She only had to make it through this last night though… otherwise there would be more of them to come.

X

[During its initial run, I posted a poll asking what people thought of the main characters in this story and was shocked when hundreds (no exaggeration) voted. I chose to keep the poll results and share them as I did at the end of this chapter's initial posting. ]

 **Poll results** came out very interesting I think

(will have no effect on the pre-decided outcome of this story) …

43% are for Jareth and Sarah falling in love

27% loves Jareth just as he is

9% hates Jareth

7% dislike Jareth but get where he's coming from

7% like Jareth but don't know if they are ready to love again

3% loves Sarah and thinks Jareth should die

0% thinks they should both die in a fire!

I found the most surprising thing about this poll to be that 4% is unaccounted for lol.


	31. Chapter 31

Beta for this chapter is ASunInWinter

X

He had shown leniency on her once more, and last night he had used the crop again, but had only swatted her with it five times rather than ten like he had planned. All the same, she had been a screaming and crying mess by the time it was over and he had not been able to help himself but to reach out and comfort her a little by placing his cool hand over one of her battered cheeks carefully till her cries subsided.

Sarah was taking her punishment rather well though, Jareth thought to himself. Certainly better than he had thought she would. Despite the restrictions placed on her food, her freedoms, and her comfort, she was wise enough to not willingly cause even more trouble for herself, sparing both of them in the process.

Jareth drank in the sight of his wife lying next to him as the sun started to seep its light into the room and closer and closer to the bed they shared.

Sarah was sleeping deeply, her upper body wrapped tightly around a pillow she seemed to always favor when sleeping in his bed and the heavy comforter had been pushed down over the night by her legs as a lighter sheet kept her warm enough. Her lush locks of dark hair fanned out in every direction haphazardly making her skin look even smoother and paler than normal.

He rolled onto his side slowly, careful not to disturb her at all as he reached out to her, taking the sheet covering her carefully between his fingers and moving it down to reveal more of her body. He inwardly winced as he looked upon the angry purple and black bruising on her back in four separate areas, knowing there were a couple more scattered about. There were the little bruises that he had left on her himself as well, though not all of those had been caused purposefully.

Very carefully he placed his fingertips over some of the bruises on her visible hip, matching his fingers up to them exactly and he remembered how he had gripped her there when he had drilled into her from behind and how he had dug in uncontrollably when he came.

He moved his hand back to the sheet, pulling it down her hips and over the pert globes of her buttocks, his eyes widening slightly when he caught sight of them. His heart rate sped up slightly from both the sympathy he felt for her and the excitement at seeing the taboo shape her cheeks were in now. The skin there was still tinted just the slightest bit pink, mostly around the welts that had managed to remain on her from her punishments. The harshest looking mark was a thin and long welt from the staff part of the riding crop that stretched across both cheeks and dimpled a little at the edge of her right one.

Jareth couldn't help his conflictions about her punishments. His biggest conflict being that although he knew that as her husband it was his duty to protect her and help her when needed (which he was certain this lesson she was learning would do in the long run even if she hated him for it now) he still couldn't help but wish he needn't be the one to carry this punishment out on her. It felt a little like a punishment on himself as well in some ways. He didn't like seeing her in pain, listening to her scream and yelp as he swatted her hide in punishment. On the other side of his conflict though there was a certain sense of satisfaction in that if he did his part right then she would finally learn that there were consequences for her foolish actions and they could both avoid more of them in the future.

Then afterwards when that part was over with there was a certain appeal in the after results, like when her buttocks were a brilliant red in color and tender to the slightest touch at the end of last night. Jareth had thought about originally carrying out her lesson in the dungeons, or maybe even the throne room the whole three days as further punishment, but he felt that his bedroom better served his purposes and honestly the fact that she had been confined to his bed had saved him from having to suffer through the nights without her being available to him.

Jareth placed the blanket carefully back where it was around her shoulders, placing a soft kiss against the back of her neck. Sarah stirred at the contact and rolled over onto her back, her eyes cracking open just long enough to take in the fact that the sun was coming up and that he was lying next to her before she closed them again, seeming intent on more sleep.

Jareth smirked at her exhaustion before placing another small kiss against her shoulder closest to him, wrapping an arm around her to pull her closer against him. She made a little moaning noise but didn't open her eyes nor do much more as he trailed more soft kisses along her shoulder and neck, making his way over her cheek before turning her head to him and sweetly kissing her lips. She moaned again softly and turned her head away, but it seemed as though she was searching for more rest rather than rejecting him outright.

Jareth nuzzled the curve of her jaw as his hand stroked lightly over her breast. "You've behaved well precious, shall I take off your chain now?"

That woke her up a bit. Sarah finally opened her eyes and turned her head to face him, a hint of excitement in her eyes. She brought her hand up to cover her morning yawn but nodded her head to agree to it regardless.

Jareth couldn't help but smirk a little in amusement at how cute she looked in the mornings as he flipped the sheet back off of her so he could see everything down to the shackle once more. If she had any protests against the cool air she kept them to herself, holding her leg as still as she could so as not to make it difficult for him to take it off in any way. "Yes indeed," she prompted hastily.

Jareth pulled himself into a position to sit up and slid his hand down her leg slowly to the shackle. He placed his hand over it and let just the slightest bit of magic escape through his palm so the shackle could recognize his magic's signature. He felt it release Sarah before he could even pull his hand back.

She immediately pulled her foot out and away from the shackle like an animal fleeing a trap and Jareth said nothing about it as she brought her ankle up to inspect the light marks the cuff had left behind. They would likely fade before the day was out. Sarah rubbed her hands over her ankle, her attention completely gone from him.

"Are you at least going to thank me?" Jareth drawled, noticing when she stiffened next to him as if suppressing an unfavorable response. When she slowly turned back to him in spite of her obvious unwillingness Jareth couldn't hide a small self-satisfied smirk. It seemed she had learnt at least a little something about consequences over the last three days to be able to recognize which of her options held less of them.

She said nothing to him, and that was alright with him since that wasn't the kind of thanks he was wanting anyway, and placed a chaste kiss against his lips, lingering just long enough for it to not be considered just a quick peck. Her compromise, he supposed.

Jareth wasn't in the mood for compromises though as he moved his body in front of her and pressed his lips against hers till first she opened her mouth for him and then he coaxed her into laying back down on the bed beneath him. He didn't close his eyes like she did, and could see how her brows were drawn in anger throughout the kiss. It made him feel like he had something to prove to her to see her still silently rejecting him, and Jareth gripped her hair in his hands so he could turn her head in a way that allowed him to deepen the kiss, exploring her thoroughly with his lips and tongue till he could feel her heartbeat speed up to match his against his chest. When he moved his hips against her pelvis she gave a small moan into his mouth that threatened to drive him wild.

He finally broke off the kiss before he could become too carried away and take her again even though he knew she had to be very sore at this point. Jareth pulled back from her and although there was a certain level of anger in her eyes, there was also a pink blush on her cheeks from the beginnings of her own arousal.

He placed a final chaste kiss against her lips, just to further his point before getting up from both her and the bed.

"So… I'm done being punished?" Sarah asked, clearly wanting to be sure before she put faith in it.

"If you think you've learned your lesson," he shrugged, leaving her on the bed as he wrapped himself up in his robe and went into the bathroom. He had a lot to get done today and couldn't stand around waiting for her to decide that it wasn't some trick of his or something else absurd.

As he washed his face and hands he could hear Sarah moving about the bedroom, listening as she tried the handle to her bedroom door and found it locked. He hadn't bothered to close the bathroom door, and so wasn't concerned about it when she stepped into the doorway. He watched her through the crystal mirrored wall behind the wash counter as she crossed her arms and leaned against the frame, the thinner sheet from the bed hanging off of her body in an alluring sort of way.

"I need to get into my room to get dressed," she told him curtly, her patience already stretched thin.

He had patience enough for them both though, and couldn't help himself but to tease her just a little more before aiding her. "I personally can find favor in that frock you have creatively concocted from our bed sheet."

Her face remained somber in the mirror's reflection, clearly not caring for his humor. "I can see Toby afterwards?" she prompted him, "It seems like it's been forever since I have."

"It was just last night," he reminded her as he wiped off his face and made his way back over to her in the doorway.

"You know what I mean," she whispered, almost more to herself than to him.

Jareth brushed his hand over her cheek as he moved passed her to the door, meaning to let her into her own room again so she could get ready for her day. "How are you feeling this morning?" he asked over his shoulder.

"Fine."

"I meant physically."

She hesitated before answering him then. "Fine," came the same curt reply.

He couldn't help but be amused with her at that. So like her to have the strength to lick her wounds in private rather than moan and groan over them uselessly. He unlocked her door and led her in, taking it upon himself to go to her closet and pick out her dress for the day since he knew better what would be best for her in at least that area.

"You didn't answer me," her voice came again from behind him as he selected a dark red tube dress lined with thick black fur at the top and bottom hems and joined it with a black fur vest so she wouldn't get cold. He turned and handed them over to her, turning his attention to her jewelry cabinet so he could select a large silver necklace with dangling shards that gave the impression of someone wearing a broken mirror around their neck and a red glass flower pin for her hair.

"You can see Toby all you want after you are dressed." He handed her the jewels that he had selected for her too, but instead of taking them and getting ready she held her ground.

"And I can… that is… can I go outside too? Into the garden anyway?"

He felt his bitter anger creep up on him at that and couldn't help but scowl down at her. "Why, precious? Do you suppose that I have forgotten that you now know your way out of it?"

She seemed to have sense enough to look embarrassed that she had even asked such a thing. "I wouldn't try to escape there again," she muttered, even though they both knew that that wouldn't make him change his mind. Even if he had forgiven her for it last time, he wasn't about to trust her in a similar situation so soon, especially if she had Little Jareth with her.

"No, Sarah, and I suggest you drop it now," he warned her.

She made no response, scowling down at the floor in front of her. It was a little bit of an odd sight to see someone trying to pass themselves off as submissive when there was temper flaring through their eyes and their chin was still held up. Jareth let it go unmentioned since he couldn't see the sense in chastising her for at least trying to keep herself in check. Besides, he was facing a lot of work today and didn't have the time for any of her rambunctious behavior right now. "Clora and Ishapelle should be on their way; they will help you get fully dressed. Afterwards you may do as you wish—within the castle walls of course—until supper time."

Sarah moved past him, hardly paying attention at all as she dropped her clothes on the side of the bed and went to her underwear chest at the foot to get her necessary things there.

Not to be ignored, Jareth moved over and stooped down behind her. Sarah stilled her movements but gave no other indication that he was concerning her at all.

"You'll need the V corset for that dress," Jareth prompted into her ear, resting his chin on her shoulder to watch as she found herself once more and reached in to get the corset he was referring to. "I don't want you over exerting yourself today though mind you," He continued as he shifted onto his knees and placed his hands on either side of Sarah's hips, knowing instinctively that his fingers were lining up right over her bruises from the past few nights even through the bed sheet she still clung to. Sarah flinched but continued to gather her things up with her free hand. Once she had what she needed she went to get up but Jareth gripped her hips just a little tighter, causing her to wince. Finally she turned her head around to glare openly at him. Her patience spent. "I want you to be rested for tonight," he informed her calmly, ignoring her look of contempt as he ran a hand gently over the welts of her buttocks through the thin bed sheet.

His head swam with thoughts of how easy it would be to flip her over and pull down the bed sheet, taking her on the floor till she cried out his name.

He allowed Sarah to pull away from him enough to turn around to face him then, watching as she carefully perched herself on her hip rather than her abused backside. "The last three nights haven't been satisfying enough for you?" she snipped, holding back what he was sure was a storm of anger.

He made the decision to be amused with her rather than miffed, smirking at her referencing. "While it was fine enough that I didn't have to suffer through your punishment in celibacy, the sex was done in a way that would be unpleasing to you because none the less you were still being punished." He ran a hand up her leg underneath the sheet and watched as Sarah stiffened slightly under his touch before regaining control of herself enough to fight the impulse to pull away from him. "Honestly, Sarah, there is so much for you to learn about sex. Things I cannot wait to teach you. The fantasies I've had… the pleasure I could give you… you would likely faint if you knew."

He was absolutely serious when he said it, meaning every word. More importantly the look of fear and embarrassed curiosity on Sarah's face told him that she absolutely believed him.

He had lived a long time, and in the world of the Underground, where morals and propriety often took a back seat to ambitions and desires there was a limitless possibility concerning things sexual and sensual in nature. Like others who had lived there, he had participated and experimented in a healthy assortment, trying things that could be considered awe-inspiring and sickening, tame and bizarre. What he and Sarah had done so far was the kind of sexual play associated with beginners, and while it was all well and good (Sarah being a beginner herself after all) he had had time to develop more… advanced tastes in such matters and was eager to teach.

He could see the uncertainty playing on her face, dancing through her eyes. He would have to go slower than he wished, he knew that, but he had patience. After all, they had forever. Not only would Sarah come to learn what he favored, but would discover what she liked as well, and he wanted very much to help in her discovery of such things.

For now Jareth simply placed a kiss against Sarah's lips, keeping it chaste but firm. She didn't respond to him this time, and he pulled back before she could even think of not doing so, sparing not only her but himself from the unpleasantness such an action would bring about. "Get dressed for your day," he ordered her, picking himself up from the floor and making his way over to his own bedroom. He paused in the doorway to look back at her over his shoulder. "I will see you at suppertime; till then stay out of trouble."

X

"I love you so very much," Sarah whispered into Toby's hair, "Don't ever stop being as sweet and good as you are now."

Toby babbled happily in front of her, making a lot of half-words and sounds as he turned a wooden red block over and over in his hands, examining it before he stacked it on top of the little tower of blocks he had constructed in front of him, seated in front of Sarah on the floor of his nursery. He could usually manage to get them about four or five high before they would start to fall over. Sarah was laying on her side on the floor behind him, her head propped up on her hand as the other would once in a while reach out to either stroke over his back or go after a stray block. She was enjoying her time just watching him play, and seeing his reactions when she would use a couple discarded blocks to make a tower or home of her own. He would stare like it was the most amazing thing in the world, then try to make the same thing, sometimes taking her blocks in the process.

She didn't mind though of course, and when he would turn around to gauge her reaction she would offer up encouragement or a smile and then try not to laugh when his face would light up with a smile of his own.

Clora and Ishapelle had come to help her dress shortly after Jareth had left her, helping her into the clothes he had picked out for her, but so far they hadn't said more than what was necessary to her and she had returned the favor in kind. They were currently sitting in little chairs against the wall, playing some sort of dice game with Torik and Tallia while Sarah and Toby played with his toys. Sarah could feel their eyes all straying to her now and then though. She didn't look over at them though until Clora let out a very harsh sigh.

"What happened to you Sarah?" she finally asked what she had no doubt been dying to, "Were you being punished or something?"

She had been locked in Jareth's room for three days without any contact with any of them. Of course they wondered about it. As far as Sarah knew only Ishapelle and Torik were aware of what she had done to warrant a punishment though.

"What a tasteless question to ask!" Ishapelle hissed at her cousin, "Don't answer her, Sarah."

Sarah really wasn't going to, especially to Clora, who would probably just find it amusing if she knew everything. That was likely why she was asking in the first place. "You knew something was going to happen to me before I even did," Sarah sneered at Clora, remembering how the female had had the gall to tease her before Jareth had taken her to the throne room. "Don't you already know what?"

Clora rolled her eyes. "If you would have stayed by the carriage you would have known too, Jareth simply told me and Ish that you wouldn't need us tending to you for a while. You were obviously being punished though, what did you do?!"

By this point the others were staying out of it, all obviously caught up in the awkwardness of the conversation save for Toby who didn't seem to have the faintest clue that anything was even happening just behind his back.

Sarah could feel her cheeks heat up from both her anger and embarrassment that this was even happening, and in front of Toby no less! Whether he understood it all or not, she wasn't going to explain anything with him around. "Just drop it Clora, that's an order!"

Clora's eyes narrowed on Sarah for a moment, but she eventually dropped her head. "Whose turn is it?" she snapped, referring to the dice game they had been playing.

X

Running a kingdom was a never-ending job… even more so when it was the Labyrinth.

During the three days Sarah had been undergoing her punishments Jareth had managed to catch up on his work that he had been behind on since Sarah had arrived in the Underground, but he was still just managing to keep ahead of the game and that wasn't like him. He didn't like his kingdom being run 'just ahead of the game' and with cold weather setting in he had a lot of work ahead of him.

He was actually thankful his mother had agreed to take over the arrangements for the début of Sarah and his son because he would have never managed such a thing without falling behind once more on his more pressing work. Just some of his responsibilities included making sure that the goblins were not figuring out the Labyrinth enough to leave its walls and cause havoc in neighboring kingdoms—and paying for the damages when they did manage it—managing the incomes and outcomes of the kingdom such as the goblin wine and gems the dwarves found and didn't want for themselves in the mountains that he would sell to other kingdoms versus things like cloths and metal that needed to be imported into the labyrinth.

Thankfully Mavid had a real head for figures and math and kept track of most of the finances of the castle, in addition to often double-checking Jareth's own work. One day when Sarah was ready for this sort of responsibility she would do some of this herself, and then even further still in the future they would all teach Toby and his attendant these responsibilities as well.

It was even more difficult thanks to the Goblin City to keep track of things because, despite all efforts made to keep things running smoothly in the Labyrinth, the goblins always had their own agenda. They currently were insisting that tomorrow was their glorious annual celebration of All Frog Warts Night (a holiday they had just made up that morning) and that they needed 500 kegs of ale to be set out for them or they would revolt.

They would do no such thing (after all this was a weekly threat they made in efforts to get more alcohol) but Jareth had compromised with them as well. The new deal was that instead of 500 kegs of ale for their made-up celebration, if they didn't revolt he wouldn't personally drop each and every one of them into the Bog of Eternal Stench. They had agreed to those terms for now but would no doubt be back with a newly made up annual celebration next week.

Simply another one of the many pressing concerns he had to regularly see to. But then there were other concerns he had on his plate now that weren't regular.

Although his mother was taking care of the debut, she still wasn't letting him forget about it either. She had written him about three letters since he had gotten back from the Devine City with Sarah, and had confronted him personally when he had gone to collect Toby from her yesterday. She was insisting that she wanted Sarah to come back, informally this time (although in the Devine Castle even informal was still formal), and give her opinions on what Kaleen had arranged so far for the debut. Naturally Jareth was against it. He could guess Sarah's opinions on the entire thing before she even stepped foot outside the labyrinth. Besides, he didn't like the idea of her going anywhere without him and his mother had specifically used the phrase 'just us females'.

Far be it from his mother to not get her way on this, though… which is what she was trying to accomplish now as she currently sat before him on the other side of his desk in Mavid's relinquished chair.

Jareth pinched the bridge of his nose between his thumb and forefinger and tried to massage away a headache that was starting to put pressure there.

"Give me a good reason she cannot spend one afternoon accompanying me," his mother insisted.

He could give her a thousand good reasons and knew not a single one would matter if they meant her not getting her way on this. It was a battle fought in vain and he knew this, but he still couldn't stop himself from trying. "Sarah has not fully recovered from a lesson she had to learn and is in no shape for a ride in a carriage." He kept it as vague as he could so she wouldn't think the matter was open for discussion. Neither his mother nor father knew that Sarah had ever tried to cross him and if it was up to him they never would.

She didn't need to know the 'whys' though to see his meaning. She did give him a sideways look though. "She wouldn't need to ride in the carriage, I can side-along-transport her there myself. And it would only be for a matter of hours."

"She is spending some time bonding with Little Jareth today."

His mother's eyes lit up at that and he knew that battle was already lost before she could even insist that he simply be brought along. Jareth looked back over his mother's shoulder at Mavid, who stood against the wall like he was just another part of the room. Mavid offered him nothing more than an eye roll. Erib, however, shot Jareth a look that said he better agree soon from his spot against the wall on the opposite side of the door from Mavid.

Jareth let out a defeated sigh. "You're only going to show her what you've arranged for the gathering right?"

Kaleen smiled at the prospect that she had won this one. "Mostly yes, but I do have an engagement to attend later and thought that Sarah might-"

"You can send her back here before that."

Kaleen narrowed her eyes slightly at that, but Jareth didn't buckle this time.

Finally his mother let out a defeated sigh of her own that mirrored his exactly. "Very well, but you know if you keep her cooped up in this dreary and… dirty castle day after day with nothing fun to do then it's no wonder that she will hate being a queen. Of course you can't take her out publicly with you till after her debut, but how is she to ever know all the perks that come from being a queen or all the joys to be found in this world when you do not even allow her the most basic tastes?"

Jareth had no answer for her, mostly because he didn't want to be forced to admit defeat again.

Kaleen took her win and finally rose up from his desk. She raised her chin on him superiorly. "Very well then, I will stop pushing the matter on you." She ran a hand down her ever straight and perfectly placed blonde hair that was the same shade as Jareth's. "Now then, where is my daughter-in-law?"

X

"What do you think? We'll all gather here of course for the formal introduction of you and Little Jareth, and then afterwards the entertainment will be placed over here and everyone will have the chance to mingle and drink throughout the night. I'm thinking of having a couple fountains placed here and a couple more out there that will distribute goblin wine to honor your kingdom."

What did she think. What a question that was.

Sarah held Toby close to her as she walked close to Jareth's mother. One minute she had been in Toby's nursery with the others, then the next Jareth had come in with an entourage that had included his mother and his father's servant and Mavid, instructing Sarah that she was to change her gown quickly because she and Toby would be spending some of the afternoon with the queen.

She had been at a loss for words as Clora and Ishapelle had marched her back to her room, saying little or nothing to her as they helped her change into a warmer overdress and cape to protect her against the chill the Underground seemed to be experiencing.

"Don't try to say anything clever Sarah," Ishapelle warned her as she re-combed her hair into a tight twist. "Just do as she asks and say no more than needed."

Truth was, Sarah was willing to take that advice. She felt really nervous around Jareth's mother. The last time she had seen Kaleen had been uncomfortable at best (what with Jareth's father being such a slime to her) but more so than that was the way Sarah had seen the queen act when Hamold wasn't around. For the short time she had seen her without him around she had been absolutely regal and proud and even willful-looking. Even when Hamold had been behaving nastily towards her she had kept her composure while expressing just how little she cared for his bad behavior. There was definitely something about the woman to be reckoned with.

What made Sarah the most nervous about the female, though, was the fact that she was Jareth's mother. Jareth seemed to hold little respect or regard for her or even his own father, but toward his mother he seemed to be downright obedient. This caused Sarah to simply hope that she didn't get on the queen's bad side. Something told her that down underneath it all, it was really Kaleen that was running the show and no one around her was any the wiser to it.

Once she and Toby had been bundled up Jareth had given her a quick goodbye mixed with a look that warned her that she better behave herself, he had ordered Mavid to accompany his mother and Erib and she had been brought here… to the middle of a forest clearing so Kaleen could show her around.

The large circular clearing among the trees of a thick forest was apparently to be the scene of the debut ball to be held for her and 'Little Jareth.' Kaleen seemed very pleased with it and since Sarah was still feeling lost to what had all happened to even bring her to this point, she would simply nod her head and try to agree with the things the older fae woman was going on about.

Besides the size of the clearing being impressive, what she found even more intriguing was that it was a perfect circle. When she walked by the edge of the tree-line she could see that in fact there were hundreds of mushrooms growing like a border all around the circled clearing. Despite the chill in the air the grass of the clearing remained as green and plush as ever, even with the trees changing colors around it. But everything within the mushrooms seemed untouched by the cold.

Kaleen had been explaining to Sarah that this site was located in the heart of the Devine Kingdom and had served as a gathering spot for countless years and countless species of the Underground. She had mentioned in passing that she had been married to Hamold in this spot and that it was a shame Jareth hadn't bothered to hold a proper wedding himself.

From what the queen had been explaining to her, there would be both royalty and nobles of all different kinds attending the gathering, either joining them in the clearing or cavorting amongst the trees if they wished. The day of the celebration had been purposefully picked because on that night the moon was apparently going to be directly overhead and would light up the clearing naturally. That apparently had some sort of importance to it of a spiritual nature but Sarah hadn't really understood the queen when she was telling her about it. Half the things the queen was going over with her she didn't understand. Sarah was pretty sure Kaleen had said she had gotten sirens to sing during this thing but Sarah wasn't too sure if she meant like actual sirens of the kind that crash ships amongst the rocks or not… not that it seemed that much of a stretch in this place though.

As they went around the clearing—Kaleen telling Sarah about ideas she had and arrangements she had already made and Sarah practiced her nodding—Mavid and Erib stood off to one side, looking around the trees as if they were keeping guard when most likely they were just bored and uninterested in such things. Sarah wished that she could detach herself from the conversation being had by the queen too.

"-a duet maybe?" the queen was saying, "Would that work for you dear?"

Sarah blushed a deep red as she realized she hadn't been listening. "Ah… yes?"

The queen must have heard the uncertainty in her voice because she paused in her walk and turned to face Sarah, looking down her nose at her even though they were close to the same height. "You don't sound too sure… shall I rephrase the question?" she asked, graciously saving Sarah the embarrassment of having to admit she didn't know what the queen had said.

"Yes please, your majesty," Sarah whispered, heat still flowing through her cheeks.

"You see in fae culture is it considered a great showing of love to sing to someone, or even play a musical piece for them. Some of the most historic relationships among our kind started because a fae heard someone singing and fell in love. At a wedding it is a part of the ceremony for the couple to sing to each other. Since you did not have a proper wedding to Jareth would you like to be given that opportunity here?"

The disbelief was probably more than showing on her face despite her remembrance of Jareth warning her against such things when around those of the fae race. "N-no I… I don't think that is necessary," Sarah stammered out, wondering just what the queen knew of her marriage to Jareth. Surely she didn't think them in love?! Didn't she know that she had been kidnapped? Was she toying with her?

Kaleen didn't seem very surprised by this, merely raising a brow and moving on in their walk. "Do you like what I have put together for you and my son, Sarah?"

Sarah nodded her head. "Yes, ma'am."

The queen turned back to her and Sarah stammered to formalize her answer more. "I mean- yes, your highness. It is very pretty."

Kaleen's green eyes scanned over to where Mavid and Erib were impatiently waiting for them. "You may call me Kaleen since we are kin. May I ask you a rather bold question?"

Sarah's guard instantly flew up as she braced herself for anything. Simply nodding her head dumbly.

"Do you like me?" Kaleen asked, keeping her chin high, her back straight, and her eyes glued unwavering on Sarah's.

Sarah felt partially awed just by the confidence that Kaleen put out while asking a question like that. Sarah felt her cheeks heat up again though when she realized that the queen was expecting an honest answer. She didn't dislike the queen, but she didn't really have a reason to like her yet either. Sarah felt somewhat relatable with the queen at times… but would she be upset if Sarah were to say as much?

"I- I don't know." Sarah heard herself saying before she could think out something more delicate to say.

Kaleen nodded her head in simple understanding. "I do not know if I like you either, Sarah. If I may speak frankly I find it hard at times to separate my feelings on you from the feelings that I came to hold for Carrie. You were her step-daughter after all. I try to see you now as my daughter-in-law rather than her step-child." The queen broke eye contact for a moment and her lips pursed as if she were bitter from just the subject. "I had very much liked Carrie once upon a time. But the hatred I came to bear for that girl…" her eyes flicked back to Sarah and Sarah found herself fighting not to flinch. "I must apologize to you now if I ever come across to you as cold and scornful for no reason Sarah. Like others of this family I simply am working to separate who you are from who Carrie was.

"That is why I wanted to bring you out here, after all," Kaleen continued, gesturing around them to the clearing. "So I may get to know you. I think that will help us both to adjust a bit to this scenario."

Well… that was… very frank indeed, Sarah thought to herself as she stood there with nothing to say in response. She had nothing to say to that in return and she felt stupid for it. She just felt awkward now as she shuffled Toby around in her arms, using him as a distraction.

Kaleen's face softened immensely as she glanced down at the toddler in Sarah's arms. "Besides," she continued, reaching out to run a gentle hand over Toby's back. "Any excuse to spend time with my only grandson is a good one."

Sarah pressed her cheek against the soft little hat on Toby's head. He was warm in her arms, having been bundled up to the point where she could see little else but his eyes before they had left.

"Is my son trying to get you pregnant?"

What was it with this woman? She had candor that was for sure! Maybe this was a game to see how badly she could get Sarah to blush. If it was then she was winning.

Kaleen took her answer from Sarah's expression though. "I assumed as much. Do you have any reason to think you might chance being barren?"

Were there no limits?! "I… I don't think so," she muttered, bringing her hand up close to Toby's ear in case she needed to cover it since his head was already resting on her shoulder and effectively covering his other one. She didn't think she was barren honestly because a doctor had never told her if she was or not. Given the circumstances though she might welcome it.

"You don't know if you are or not though?" the queen pressed, her face a stone expression of seriousness. "Have you ever been examined to see?"

"No," Sarah answered, trying hard not to snap at the queen when she said it and trying harder still not to glare at the queen. Maybe this was why Mavid answered questions the way he did; with no resistance, no emotions, and unabridged truth. Maybe this was something Kaleen did with everyone.

"Interesting," was her only response, but she surprisingly did not continue on with another question.

Toby pulled back on her shoulder, pushing at it suddenly like he wanted down but Sarah held on to him because she didn't want to set him down out here in the middle of nowhere. "Down!" Toby insisted verbally.

At her resistance to letting him go Toby reacted immediately and let out a scream in her ear that would make anyone around think that she was trying to murder him. Sarah flinched under the deafening noise and turned her head to the side as Toby continued his tirade, starting to kick his legs a little too. He had thrown fits in the Aboveground too, but nothing like this and it had been a long while.

Sarah was busy trying to compensate for his wiggling so she didn't drop him that she was only dimly aware that Mavid and Erib had walked over to them as well.

"What's wrong?" Erib sneered, giving Sarah a look as if he blamed her directly for Toby's fit.

"He wants down," Sarah spoke up over the screaming.

"Well, dear, set him down," the queen hollered back.

Toby swung himself against her with every intension of escape and in the process Sarah almost lost her grasp on him, and although she managed to keep a hold on him she couldn't help but notice when about six hands all shot out to help her do so. Sarah's cheeks reheated from the embarrassment and frustration she felt now with this new problem. It was annoying as hell for Toby to be screaming like this over nothing and for them all to be standing around her like they expected her to either fix the problem or accidentally drop him, whichever came first.

They obviously expected her to put him down, which was certainly what Toby wanted, but he couldn't always get what he wanted and she didn't want to chance anything out here.

"Just set him down," the queen suggested again.

"What if there is something in the grass? Or he picks up something he shouldn't?" Sarah snapped back, her emotions getting the better of her.

"Then he will be taught not to do such things, but there is nothing of danger to him within the fairy ring." Mavid snapped at her. "Do as the queen suggested and put him down."

"Mavid, you forget that Sarah is your queen, you must not snap at her," Kaleen commanded him in an icy voice that reminded Sarah so much of the tone Jareth would sometimes take with her. Mavid's cheeks flushed slightly but he said nothing more after that.

Toby twisted his head around and as soon as he saw Mavid standing close by he squirmed around so he could hold his arms out for Mavid to hold him instead of Sarah, continuing to scream.

Sarah didn't want to hand Toby over to him, but Mavid reached his arms out for Toby and with the child struggling so much in her arms she doubted how much longer she would be able to hold onto him… or possibly even want to.

She relinquished Toby over into Mavid's embrace. Mavid cradled Toby against his shoulder as his cries started to slow down and ran comforting circles with his hand over the babe's back. It never ceased to strike Sarah as strange to see two cruel and domineering males like Jareth and Mavid acting so sweet and gentle with Toby. Like Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde or something.

Once Toby was calm enough to speak coherently he tried again with Mavid. "Down."

To Sarah's utter chagrin Mavid immediately lowered Toby to the ground. She was so shocked that Mavid had just blatantly undermined her like that that she could only watch as Toby immediately smiled and ambled around on the soft-looking grass. When he looked back at her and smiled Sarah's heart jumped into her throat for a second. He smiled just like Jareth when he got his way.

"Well now that that has been settled," the queen sighed, the slightest bit of irritation in her voice as she spoke to Sarah once more. "I know that… Sarah, your attention please."

Sarah turned her head stiffly back to the queen, still fighting off her urge to glare.

"I know that my son has asked that after this you and my grandson be returned to him promptly, but I would like for you two to join me just a little longer. I have a queen's appointment with someone I would like you to meet."

"I was instructed to escort-" Mavid began, clearly looking to object for Sarah, but the queen cut him off.

"I know your instructions Mavid, but I am overriding them." Kaleen said simply while taking hold of Sarah's arm and looping it with hers.

Sarah wanted to pull away but didn't have the nerve to do so yet. Queen's appointment? What the hell was that? Sarah had the worst feeling in her stomach that maybe it was something like a 'woman's appointment' but said nothing since she couldn't think of a tactful way to say 'hell no' at the moment.

"If my son has a problem with this you may simply tell him I kidnapped her," Kaleen grinned, making a joke that Sarah cared less than nothing for.

"Keep an eye on little Jareth, we won't be long." she instructed both Mavid and Erib before turning to a paler Sarah. "Don't worry dear, he will be more than safe with them."

Sarah turned her head to look back at Toby once more but found herself looking at a polished stone wall instead. Turning her head back around she could see that they were in one of the elegantly splendorous rooms of the Devine Castle. She hated it when she was transported around like that. It wreaked havoc on the common sense her human-raised brain possessed to be taken from one place to another in less than a second like that.

They weren't alone in the room though. Across from them were two identical-looking young men who were messing with cases and boxes and even covered cages, trying to set things in a proper order of some sort. Sarah felt more nervous about what this 'appointment' could be as she looked them over. Neither were human, she could tell that much from their slate-grey skin and pointed ears sticking up from the black curls of their hair. One of them spoke to the other in a language she did not know and she could see they also possessed teeth even sharper looking than Jareth's. They seemed very much to be twins, no matter what their species. They didn't turn their attention to the queen and she did not greet them. She did ask one of them something in whatever language they had been speaking and got a quick reply before she turned back to Sarah with a smile.

There was something to the queen's expression and demeanor now that screamed that she was excited for whatever was about to happen. "Their benefactor, Traction, will be ready shortly. He is my favorite of all time," she looked back at the boxes the males were setting up with greedy eyes before turning back to Sarah. "Are you curious to know what's going on?" Kaleen asked her in much the same manner as a child wanting to share a secret.

Sarah certainly was curious if not apprehensive. "Yes."

"This is one of the perks of being a queen that I wanted to personally introduce you to. I know you probably haven't experienced many of them yet, but there are a lot of perks to be enjoyed. You haven't been properly debuted as Jareth's queen yet, and so would not be able to socialize outside of the Labyrinth with other nobility, but there are many enjoyable things to experience after you are. There are private parties, entertainments, musical performances, and feasts to name only a few. You will find also that there is a great deal of shopping to be had, which is what you and I will do for a bit."

They were going to shop?

Sarah had been ready for the queen to spring just about anything on her… except for that.

Shopping? Sarah looked back over at the wall where the two males were still stacking boxes. Somehow this still didn't seem to add up to shopping.

A ghost of a smile was creeping around the corners of the queen's lips now as she studied Sarah's confusion. "Have you ever shopped before in your lifetime, Sarah?"

Sarah kind of blanched at that, wondering if maybe Kaleen didn't know that humans shopped or if maybe she just assumed Sarah had been too poor to ever do such a thing. "Er, why yes your- Kaleen, but usually I would go to a store to do it." Sarah tried to push aside the bitter thought pricking at the back of her mind that she didn't have any money of her own even if she did feel like 'shopping'.

"Well naturally royalty cannot go out amongst the common street venders and peruse, but often both men and women of the nobility will get together in groups and several talented vendors will display their wares for purchase or as gifts. This one is more private of course, but Traction has been a dear friend of mine for a long time and I often purchase large amounts of his supplies so he is usually more than willing to hold a private showing when I ask him to."

"You forgot to mention how handsome I was," a smooth male voice scolded the queen playfully. Both women turned as (Sarah could only assume) Traction appeared in the room, next to the many boxes the two young men had finished setting up. Sarah tried not to stare, but it was hard not to.

Traction was at least a foot taller than Jareth and thick all over with muscle, with the same slate-grey skin as the two helpers. His hair was long and straight, falling down his back like black silk and tied with a purple ribbon that matched the customized ridiculously ruffled shirt he wore tucked into what might have been a black kilt. And a floor length black cape. What was really striking to Sarah though, that she had a hard time not staring at, were the other features he possessed… like the fact that his eyes were purely white with no pupils, or the deep ridges of his brows, and the pointed ears and sharp teeth, and the large and clawed feet he possessed that could have never been placed in any kind of shoe, or his long tail that was currently wrapping around the ankle of one of his said feet. He wasn't ugly, really, probably handsome for his species for all she knew, but he was just… a lot to look at.

Kaleen gave a delighted yelp at the sight of him and hurried over to give him a kiss in the air by each cheek—which he returned with ease—before simply embracing him in a hug. Sarah was glad neither of them noticed her when she noticeably gaped as the cape he had been wearing unclasped itself from the front of his chest and spread out to show that it was no cape but actually just enormous bat-like wings wrapped around himself, which now stretched out to engulf Kaleen in the same manner as his arms had, momentarily causing the queen to disappear beneath them before folding back into place in a pretense of a cape.

Sarah wanted to sit down for a minute after seeing that, but Kaleen and Traction had already turned to her. "This stays between us, Traction, but this is my new daughter-in-law Sarah. She has never been to a showing before and I hope it is alright with you if she sits in with us," the queen smiled, stepping out of Traction's hug.

Traction looked surprised, but pleased to see her none the less. "Jareth has remarried you say? Splendid!" He moved his large body with ease over to her and Sarah could only stare and try to hold her mouth shut as she got a close-up look at him. He reached out a large hand to her and she could see now that that too was clawed, but he took her much smaller hand with a practiced gentleness and brought it all the way up to his fang-filled mouth to place a polite kiss on her knuckle. "I am Traction, my dear, I hope you enjoy yourself today."

He was just so… polite, and he looked like something that could tear the room apart and kill everyone in it in a matter of seconds. Sarah couldn't help but smile back.

Something like understanding flashed through his face as his white eyes seemed to almost glow against his skin. "You look as if you have never seen one of my kind before. Are you not from the Underground?"

"She is from the Aboveground, recently brought down by my son," Kaleen answered for her, for which Sarah was actually glad since she still couldn't quite remember how to talk. "Sarah is a human, and has only seen those of the fae race for the most part. "Sarah, Traction is a gargoyle of the Minus Clan."

She didn't know what the Minus were, but she understood the word 'gargoyle' and her eyes bugged even more as her smile got wider. A gargoyle… in a purple ruffle shirt!

She was going to shop from a gargoyle in a purple ruffle shirt!

"It's nice to meet you," she finally managed to say. "Are they also gargoyles?" she asked, referring to the twins that were standing off to the side now.

Traction's fangs gleamed as he smiled. "My sons are only half breeds, but still young enough that they should start growing their wings in about another rainy season or two. I'm afraid it's too late to hope they might still get their tales though. Their mother was a dryad."

"Anything she gets today will go on my bill, Traction, as my treat to her," Kaleen smiled at her.

"Shall we get started then?" Traction beamed, clapping his clawed hands together with a loud bang, "If you beautiful ladies would stand over there…"

X

"Thank you again," Sarah gasped as she looked at the pile of things that both she and Kaleen had picked out for her, though Kaleen's pile was almost twice the size of hers. It had been… rather fun actually.

Traction had shown them both a lot of wonderful and interesting things. Everything from shoes, dresses, lingerie, bottles of beauty and health remedies, flower arrangements, and even live animals had been paraded past them for the last hour and although she had passed on any animals, Sarah had ended up with one of just about everything else.

"It was my pleasure," Kaleen smiled as she studied her own pile, cuddling a newly bought baby chimera in her arms. "I'll see that this stuff is sent to my son's castle right away. We must do this again sometime."

Sarah could only nod, although she still wasn't at ease with being around the queen like the queen seemed to be around her. "We'll go collect To- Little Jareth now?" Sarah asked hopefully, not wanting to seem ungrateful but worried about Toby. She didn't like that they had left him for so long with Mavid and Erib.

"Of course, I'll take you back myself and then I'll allow Mavid to transport you the rest of the way to my son. And I'll tell you right now, if he gives you any trouble about going back late than you can tell him to take it up with me."

She was trying hard for Sarah to like her, or possibly to convince herself that she liked Sarah at all, so Sarah simply smiled politely back. She turned her gaze down to the pile of things Kaleen had bought for her one last time, but it was already gone and she saw only grass as they were already back in the clearing. Sarah steadied herself and her mind as she processed that but knew it would be a while before she could get used to such a thing, if ever.

"What happened?!" Kaleen sputtered from next to her, causing Sarah to wheel around and her jaw to drop once more as she saw the clearing wasn't so much of a clearing anymore. Mavid and Erib and Toby were all smeared with dirt and grass stains, but seemed alright. The clearing, however, was in chaos, mounds of dirt were overturned all over the clearing as if giant gophers had run under it and off to one side it looked like some of the trees had bent in toward the center of the clearing like they were trying to get inside.

Despite all that though, Mavid and Erib actually looked very pleased and Toby was smiling and laughing like it was the greatest thing ever. Sarah rushed over to Toby right away, practically tearing him out of Mavid's grip before he could hand him over. He was a right mess with mud smeared on his cheek and a few small leaves in his hair. The hat that had been covering his head seeming to have disappeared. "Are you okay?!" she gasped, looking him over for any cuts.

"He's fine," Mavid assured her, the same pleased smirk never leaving his face.

"What happened here?" the queen demanded of Erib.

Erib was currently trying to tuck the loose strands of his long white hair back behind his ears. "We were playing with him, keeping him amused by allowing him to run around a little, pointing things out to him. An imp ran by just outside the ring and climbed onto one of those trees over there," he motioned toward the trees that looked like they had been pulled toward them by some huge hand, "I pointed it out to Little Jareth and I suppose he wanted a better look because he started running that way."

"I grabbed him up of course," Mavid piped in, "But he threw a terrible fit and before we knew it… this happened," he gestured over the trees and the upturned earth all around them."

Sarah frowned at that. "What do you mea-"

"You're not serious?!" the queen shrieked in joy from beside Sarah, causing her to jump and Toby to flinch. Sarah placed quick kisses to Toby's face before he could decide that he had been scared enough to start crying or something.

Both males grinned back at the queen in response and she turned and embraced both Sarah and Toby in a joyous hug that only managed to frighten Sarah a little more than she already was. Didn't Jareth warn her that the fae tended not to show their emotions? What the hell?!

"Isn't that wonderful Sarah?! Frankly I was starting to worry, but better a late bloomer than never at all. Little Jareth just used magic for the first time! Oh, Jareth is going to be so thrilled when he finds out! And if there was ever a time for it… in the middle of a fairy ring too! And look at what he did! Is that why you've been fussy today little precious one? Because you had a buildup of magic in you?"

"Toby used magic?" she asked numbly, like she was trying to process that both in her mind and on her tongue as she said it.

"I was worried that he hadn't yet, being in the Aboveground during such crucial developmental time. It would have been a pity if that had impaired him. And just look at what he managed to do, Sarah! It will take at least three days' worth of magic for this to be put to rights. He's going to be as powerful as Jareth when he grows up! But then the magic does run strong through the men of Hamold's line. Why, I'm told when my husband first used magic he leveled half of the sea-side castle he was born in."

She wanted to sit down.

In fact she needed to sit down.

The fact that Toby was in her arms made Sarah fight to slowly lower herself, allowing herself to drop a little more when someone reached out and gripped her waist to slowly lower her till she sat on the ground. She didn't know if it was Mavid or Erib. There was talk around her, possibly even shouting but she didn't hear it. Her bottom should have still hurt way too much for her to sit on it at all, and maybe it did, but she felt nothing. She was much too focused on Toby.

Or…instead of Toby was he really just… Little Jareth?

X

"You are absolutely perfect, do you know that my little prince?" Toby played with the crest hanging off of Jareth's neck, holding it up for him to see as if he were showing it to Jareth for the first time. Jareth set aside the note his from his mother that he had just finished reading.

"Se-se" Toby cooed up at him.

Jareth smiled down at him, "Now that you have found your magic you'll need to learn how to control it. After all, one day you will wear the same crest to mark your bloodline and you will not shame that line by having sloppy use of your gifts."

"He's developing at a perfectly normal rate," Aboris smiled approvingly as he used a wet rag to wipe off the rest of the dirt from Toby's shoulder. "No cuts on him. I suspect after expending such a large amount of magic that it will be a long time before he is able to build any kind of stock back up."

"He's going to do that again?" Sarah gasped from where she sat next to Jareth on a little cushion. She had said very little at all since she had come back with Toby and Mavid… late. Mavid and Toby had been absolutely filthy and before he had gotten a chance to mention anything to either of them about their tardiness Mavid had handed him the note from his mother and told him everything about how Toby had used his magic for the very first time, tearing the fairy ring apart as he did so. All through his story Sarah had only stood off to the side and held Toby to her with the most peculiar look on her face. When Jareth had taken Toby from her and showered him with affection and praise she had not fought him, still opting to just stand there and watch like she wasn't sure what she was looking at anymore.

He had taken both Toby and Mavid to Aboris when he had been told the extent of the damage Toby's magic had caused so they could both be checked over. Now Sarah spoke up though and he could hear nothing but strain in her voice.

If she knew any better she would know that this occasion was cause for celebration.

Aboris seemed a little taken aback by her reaction to it as well, blinking a couple times before attempting an answer. "Well… yes of course. Nothing like what he did today of course mind you. The magic has been building inside of him since his conception and only released today when his emotions were strained. He's exhausted himself of it, like all babes do their first time since they have no way of controlling it. Until he builds it up again he will have no further magic mishaps and even then the effect will be much smaller in comparison with today. It happens with all babes of the fae, and a few other races for that matter. It will likely be a full winter once again before he builds up enough magic energy to lose control of it."

Sarah didn't seem consoled by any of this as she simply continued to stare at the far wall.

"Shall I look over Mavid for damages now?" Aboris addressed to Jareth.

"I'm perfectly capable of knowing if I was injured or not," Mavid snapped, washing the dirt from his own face over a little basin of water.

"That won't be necessary, Aboris, I wish for you to examine Sarah now," Jareth informed him.

She perked up a little at that, turning a confused gaze to him. "I wasn't there when he did it though."

"Never mind that, Aboris is going to test your fertility." The note his mother had written had been a quickly scribbled sentence letting him know that Sarah didn't know if she was even able to conceive or not. He would have Aboris run a quick test, worst case scenario he would at least know for sure, and best case Aboris could pinpoint within a couple of days when she would be the most susceptible to his seed.

Sarah's jaw dropped as Aboris regrouped and turned his attention back to his supplies, getting things ready to follow Jareth's orders.

"Shut your mouth if you don't intend to make use of it, Sarah," Jareth told her, tacking a wink on the end of his off-color joke.

Sarah closed her mouth, just before realization passed over her face and she scowled at him before turning her head away, crossing her arms over her chest.

Once the elf had his cot set up he looked back over his shoulder at Sarah, giving the thin mattress a quick pat. "If you sit up here on the edge I'll be quick your highness," he coaxed. "You needn't even change."

Sarah stiffened, but made no move to get up.

Jareth turned to her, making sure that she had heard Aboris.

She continued to sit with her arms crossed stubbornly over her chest, glaring at the opposite wall rather than at anyone in particular.

"Sarah, didn't you hear him?" Jareth prompted her as Toby pulled at the crest on his neck once more.

She nodded her head stiffly.

"Get up then."

"No."

She was being purposefully difficult and disobedient and it was wearing fast on his temper. He leaned closer to her, lowering his voice as he spoke into her ear. "You are already going to be reprimanded for coming back late despite my instructions, don't compound it."

Her head snapped to his then with such speed that the only reason her nose didn't bash against his was because he flinched. "That wasn't my fault!" she shouted in his face.

Toby startled in his arms at the sudden blast of noise from his new mother and Jareth cursed softly to himself as the babe let out a loud cry. "Mavid, take him to the nursery for the moment," Jareth ordered, holding his son out to his attendant so he could more properly see to the first problem he had at hand.

Mavid looked over at Aboris and then to Sarah like he was sorry to miss the show that was no doubt about to take place. He got up, however, and took Jareth's son from him without a word otherwise. Jareth held onto his screaming toddler a moment longer so Mavid had no choice but to stop and pay attention. "I'll talk to you later myself," Jareth informed him. He had been late too after all.

Mavid said nothing and made no outward reaction, although Jareth could guess that likely the male was fighting not to roll his eyes at the knowledge that he too was in trouble for that. They both were.

"Step out of the room for a moment," Jareth ordered Aboris.

Without a word of protest but perhaps a moment of hesitation he did as told, leaving Jareth alone with his willful little wife, who still sat fuming next to him.

As if she had the right to fume over this, if anyone had that right it was him!

Jareth slid out of his seat and took a deep breath to calm himself before sending her a sideways glance. "Very well Sarah, explain to me why you are not to be blamed at all for arriving back here late."

She narrowed her eyes on him and he had to take another breath to keep his anger from rising. "I was spending time with your mother! She insisted that-"

"Damn it Sarah, she is not your husband, I am! I am as aware as you are that she is my mother and a queen and she is just as aware that I am your husband and king and that she cannot override any command I give. She has no rights to command you to do anything as you are not a part of her kingdom. More importantly than that she cannot lord over you because after all you are a queen as well. Your power is not equal to hers but your rank is and so both you and Mavid should have followed my orders rather than hers. Since neither of you did you are both to be lightly chastised."

"That's not fair!"

Jareth cringed at that phrasing she clung to so desperately. "It is not only fair, but the way things work. But now, this display you are putting on is quickly turning what would have been a light scolding and possibly bed without supper into yet another brandishing with my riding crop. Are you so set on never being able to sit again?"

She didn't answer him, simply looked off to the side to glare at the wall. As if that would make him think she wasn't glaring at him still just because she wasn't looking at him. "Why are you acting this way?" he snapped at her, asking the question that had been bothering him since she had gotten back. "Our son has just found his magic, something to celebrate, and you are being nothing but infuriating and noncompliant."

"As if I should be happy that every day he seems to be turning less and less into the babe I know and love and more into… you?!" she snarled at him.

It was like a little stab in his chest when she said that. Jareth fought himself to not actually rub his chest where he could feel the pain. "So… you cannot love my son if he in fact reminds you of me?"

She let out a surprisingly loud growl and got up off the cushion. "That's the most confusing part of all!" she shouted at him. "I do love Toby, and I will no matter what he becomes or what he does or how he acts. That won't change how I feel about him. And it confuses me to no end because he's starting to remind me of you! I could never love you!"

It shouldn't have surprised him to hear her say such things. He knew it really shouldn't have. But it still slightly did, and it still hurt. Anger was quick on the heels of that hurt though and Jareth had to cross his arms over his chest to keep from following his impulse at the moment to throttle her. When she said things like that… all he could see was red.

A look of concern passed over Sarah's face and she took a fearful step back from him. She should be fearful, he thought bitterly to himself. They had been in a good place this morning as far as he was concerned. She was behaving, bonding with Toby. He was getting work done, thinking about ravishing her tonight. Toby finding his magic was indeed a joyous occasion, like taking his first steps or saying his first words. If there was ever a day Jareth had been allowed to be happy it would have been this one… but she had manage to spoil it all once again!

The anger he felt just kept boiling up… till he couldn't think or see or speak. His hands were clenched into fists and crossed tightly over his chest to try to hold it in, but he couldn't.

"Jareth?" Sarah asked in a small and uncertain voice.

Her voice was like a catalyst, scratching at his ears and causing his anger to focus to her, threatening to spill over. It was going to, there was no way to hang onto it. With a final effort Jareth turned his attention away from Sarah and stormed out of the room and across the hall to the closest door. It didn't matter what was in that miscellaneous room… he was going to destroy it all anyway. He knew that before he even opened the door and stepped into the lounging room.

X

Sarah jumped when she heard another loud cracking sound come from the room across the hall where Jareth had gone. She stayed where she was, rooted to her spot in Aboris's healing room out of fear for what would happen if she did move. And where would she even go? To her bedroom, or maybe the nursery? She might as well march right into the room Jareth was no doubt tearing up for all that would do for her.

"Miss?" came a shaky voice. Sarah turned to see Aboris had come back into the room from his supply closet. "Did his highness leave?"

They both jumped when another loud bang sounded from across the hall.

There was a long pause between them accompanied by an unspoken understanding. Sarah let out a long sigh "For the moment at least."

"Will he be coming back?"

"I hope not," she muttered under her breath.

"Do you want this?" Aboris asked, holding his hand out in front of her.

Sarah looked down to see he was offering her a little teal-colored pill. She didn't know what it was or what it would do. When the door across the hall where Jareth was started to open, she didn't feel the need to question the healer. She quickly took it from his palm and threw it down the back of her throat.

Jareth stormed back into the room, seeming just as mad as he had been when he had left. Though now there was sweat on his brow and his face was flushed. His eyes fixed on Sarah and she had no time to back away as he headed straight for her. She tensed as he gripped her arms painfully tight, forcing her back till her legs hit the cot and she flopped back onto it, surprised when it didn't hurt near as much as it probably should have for her to hit her butt against the stiff matt.

"I am not in the mood for any more of your impertinence today darling," he sneered nastily as he pushed her back further onto the cot. "You're going to sit here and be a good girl while Aboris performs a fertility exam on you."

Sarah scowled back as she scooted back further onto the thin mattress. This really should have been hurting her more than it was. It was an uncomfortable irritation where it should have been awful pain for her to sit. Aboris must have slipped her a powerful pain-killer. "I don't need it!" she insisted indignantly.

"I don't remember asking your opinion on it."

"It's my body!" Sarah hissed.

"One more word out of you…" he growled at her ominously. His eyes dared her to try him.

Between the hateful look he was diving her and the hostility she felt coming off of him she decided to keep her mouth shut on this one even though she was far from happy herself.

Jareth turned back to Aboris, "Are you waiting for an invitation?!" he snapped at the elf.

"Don't talk to Aboris like that!" Sarah scolded him, flinching when he turned back to pang her with another warning glare. "He's going to be performing some sort of exam on me, I don't want him nervous," she defended.

Jareth let out an irritated huff but relinquished that point as he backed off from her, going to stand against the wall so Aboris would have room to work. Aboris gave Sarah an apologetic glance as he stepped up to the raised cot and instructed her to scoot just a little closer to the edge. "I'll be quick," he assured her, setting some long and thin medic's tools on a paper sheet next to her legs.

Sarah tried to bite down on her anger towards Jareth, forcing herself to ignore him completely as he stood off to the side and watched in silence. She hoped she was barren, that would really spite him! Aboris pulled a chair up in front of her and slipped her heels off of her, setting them on the floor next to him and had her place her feet on his knees. Sarah looked up at the ceiling rather than anything else as the elf pushed her skirts up, pausing when he did so. "Oh, you're wearing underwear," he said, sounding surprised. "You'll need to remove that."

"You have scissors, don't you? Her hose and garters are out of the way just cut the underwear." Jareth snapped impatiently. "This doesn't need to be a three-hour ordeal and she would need to take the stockings off to get the underwear off."

"If he cuts it I'll have to walk around in ruined underwear." Sarah snapped at Jareth.

"You won't have to deal with it for long."

Sarah let out a long and slow breath as she glared up at the stone ceiling, trying to get a grip on her anger before it could run away on her again.

The exam was done quickly as Aboris had promised once he had cut her underwear. She felt almost nothing from it though because of the drug he had slipped her. If she was lucky it would last her the rest of the night.

X

"Come here Sarah."

She hesitated in the doorway, clearly wondering what she should do, which was just silly because they both knew she would do as he told her or else suffer the consequences. All the same though, she did and Jareth found his mood darkening as he sat down on the edge of his bed. His brow creased as he held onto the remaining patience he had by the tips of his fingers. "I said come here."

"Am I in trouble?" she asked brazenly, looking as if she would try to bolt as soon as he gave any sort of confirmation.

After her exam she had been sent straight to her room for the rest of the night. Jareth hadn't wanted to see her anymore after she had been so awful about his son's accomplishment for uncertainty of what he would do if she carried on. He had thought to send her to bed without supper, but after having eaten very little over the last few days he had decided it healthier for her to have supper after all. He had allowed his cousins to take it to her.

His mood hadn't been soured entirely though… he was able to learn that she was indeed able to conceive. That was a great deal of good news and helped soften his mood towards her considerably. He couldn't even fathom what his reaction to news such as her being barren would be… and shuddered to think of anyone else finding out such a thing. Now that he knew that she could get pregnant the only obstacle was getting her so.

Despite her… difficultness… today had brought him much to be happy about.

Right now she was standing in the archway between his room and hers, her arms crossed over her chest and a glower planted bravely on her face. It didn't fool him though. Jareth could see the way her shoulders hunched down and forward and her head drooped slightly, the stiff stance of her posture all together. She was trying to convince herself more than him that she wasn't afraid at all.

She was wearing one of her nightgowns, Clora and Ishapelle having already changed her out of her dress for the night. It was long and light blue in color, draping off of Sarah's body in a way that gave no hint of what shape was underneath it. It was one worn purely for comfort.

Jareth had told her he wanted her in the short red one he had given her. Just another thing she had willfully disobeyed him on. "You're certainly doing nothing to help yourself, precious. Now come here so I may speak to you properly."

Sarah looked downcast as she made her way slowly across the stone floor of his room, stopping just short of the platform his bed was on. He had already changed for the night himself, wearing a soft and long silver and blue tunic over a pair of deep blue loose-fitting leggings. Though there was no place for him to keep it, her eyes still roamed about him as if looking to see if he was hiding his riding crop somewhere. No doubt she expected another spanking for angering him today.

Jareth reached out for her hand, meaning to offer comfort and pull her closer to him, but she flinched and stepped back just out of his reach. The look on her face showed him that she hadn't consciously done either of these things, but that didn't change the fact that she had. If anything it made it hurt worse that it was purely reflex for her to do so now.

Jareth forced himself to stamp down his own impulse to reach out and drag her to him if he had to when she did so. His bitterness crept up to the back of his tongue and left a foul taste there. He was sure the look he was giving her now reflected just what he thought of her reaction to him and didn't try to mask it in the slightest.

"I thought I had left instructions to wear that red nightgown tonight," he snapped at her, "The one hanging near the back of your closet."

"It's too cold out!" She protested immediately. "And that thing is so sheer I can see everything through it… which is totally unnecessary since it's cut way too low and the skirt is way too high." Her face was the picture of indignation as she listed off the things she found wrong with that particular garment. Not one of these reasons mattered to Jareth though as they were the whole point behind him having ordered her to wear it.

"You wear whatever I want you to." He informed her in a dead-pan tone. "If you cannot adhere to such things then you may wear nothing at all. Do I make myself clear?"

She scowled down at him and he could see it as her eyes started to shine with her upset. "It's my body," she defended, her chin quivering slightly at the end.

"And you belong to me," Jareth reasoned with her. "Therefore your body in fact belongs to me as well."

She opened her mouth as if to say something again but he cut her off. "I'm not inviting a discussion about this, Sarah," he warned her. "This isn't what I wanted you in here to discuss in any case."

She gave him a scowl at that. "What did you want to discuss?"

"A few things actually. Earlier today you put on quite the display. Mavid told me after I sent you to your room that at the fairy ring you just about fainted when you first found out little Jareth had magic. Then there is the matter of your screaming at me that you don't want him turning into me. I think that kind of reaction deserves some addressing, don't you?"

She crossed her arms over her chest and stared down at the floor rather than at him, obviously unwilling to speak. Perhaps she didn't know what to say.

Jareth took in a deep breath and let it out very slowly, calming himself before standing up from his bed, reaching out to place his hands on his wife's shoulders gently but firmly. He would ask her to sit with him, but surely her bum was still causing her much pain. So instead he stood with her, tilting her head up to look at him. There was worry in her eyes, and sadness. He was observant enough to know that her mind was focused on his son. Jareth let out another sigh and placed a reassuring kiss against her forehead, to which she didn't pull back from this time. "He is my son Sarah, a part of my bloodline and my flesh, he is bound to take after me in more than a few ways."

"I don't want him growing up to be cruel," Sarah confessed softly, unafraid of any consequence that may follow such a statement. While it did prick at his heart, Jareth didn't allow himself to take any offense by it. Sometimes he did have to be cruel… being a leader demanded that. Sarah didn't understand that fully yet. In time he was sure she would come to see that he truly wasn't cruel to her at all. Jareth waved her comment from his mind rather than allow himself to be pulled into this particular fight once more. Instead he decided to try assuaging her fears for the time being, pulling her into his arms and cradling her against his chest. To his surprise she allowed him to do so, even wrapping her arms around him too—even after calling him cruel. Obviously she needed the comfort badly.

"I don't know if I could stand it to watch him grow up to be that way," she continued on against his shoulder. "If he hurt someone… Jareth I just can't picture him doing that! He's so sweet and innocent."

We all were once, Jareth thought to himself. Some of us still are, he mused as he ran his hand over the soft tresses of Sarah's hair as she cried onto him. He placed another kiss against her neck and continued to hold her and pet her as she tried to calm herself down. He suddenly felt bad for having yelled at her earlier… losing his temper like he had. She was still hardly more than a child after all, naïve and simple-hearted. It was part of her charms but when she tried to act so adult most of the time it was easy for him to forget that about her. She had obviously been spooked by the events of the day and was emotional. She couldn't have meant the horrible things she had said. Possibly she didn't even know what she was saying at the time. It was just a mistake, Jareth thought to himself as he held her close.

Sarah was calming down now and pulled back from him enough to wipe her eyes on the back of her hand. He had no handkerchief to offer her or else he would have. Jareth placed another kiss against her temple. "I'm sorry I yelled at you earlier," he apologized softly.

Even through her diminishing tears, Sarah still managed to widen her eyes and look up at him. "W-what?" clearly unbelieving that he was actually saying sorry to her for anything.

Stubborn and prideful though he was, Jareth had still been taught to say he was sorry when there was call for it, though she seemed to think there was a call for it a great deal more often than he did. "I yelled at you and shouldn't have, I apologize. You were clearly stressed."

Sarah stared at him for another minute or so before she had to relent to wiping her tears away once more, trying to take deep breaths herself.

"I know that you are worried about our son's upbringing. It's natural, but unnecessary," Jareth reassured her. "He has you to look after him, after all."

A soft smile came to Sarah's lips at that and she finally nodded her head in agreement.

Knowing that for once he had said the right thing, Jareth couldn't help but smile as well. Maybe he could let it go this once that she had disobeyed him with the nightgown… and surely having been sent to her room for the rest of the day was punishment enough for coming back to him late.

There was still the matter of her willfully disobeying and embarrassing him in Aboris's office though. That wasn't as easy to tolerate and needed reprimanding.

Jareth pulled back from her a little bit, not looking forward to what he would need to do now.

"What is it?" Sarah asked, clearly confused as to why he was pulling away from her.

Jareth continued to run his hands softly over the length of her arms. "There is still the other matter of the utter disrespect you showed to me in going against my wishes to have you examined."

Sarah looked at him as if he had just slapped her before her face closed off from him and a scowl etched its way deep into her features. "Yes, but you got your way didn't you. I went through the exam."

"You did not submit to it, I forced you to go through with it, or it would never have gotten done." Jareth clarified. "I do not wish to be rough with you tonight Sarah, so if you give me no further cause to be otherwise I shall be generous to you."

Her eyes narrowed in suspicion and he saw a hand disappear around her, no doubt going over her backside as she weighed out how much more she could take. "What do you call generous?"

"You will need to be spanked for this of course, but I'm willing to make it as… enjoyable for you as possible. Less of a humiliation." Jareth could already feel himself hardening halfway as thoughts raced through his mind at the possibilities.

Sarah's eyes widened once more and she scoffed at him in disbelief. "What? A spanking isn't enjoyable and it is always a humiliation."

"It can happen either way Sarah, but none the less it must happen and whether you choose to believe this or not I take no pleasure in chastising you for your ill manners and bad behavior. Instead of taking that misery upon myself tonight I am willing to make it less of a bother for the both of us. It's up to you."

She crossed her arms over her chest again and continued too scowl, looking first to the floor, then the wall, then the balcony doors, then finally sliding her gaze back to him.

"How… what would make it… 'enjoyable'?" she finally brought herself to ask.

Jareth couldn't manage to hide his smirk.


	32. Chapter 32

Beta for this chapter is The Art of Suicide

X

"I really don't want to do this," Sarah whined, even though she knew no one was really listening to her. She stood between Ishapell and Clora in Jareth's room, waiting as patiently as she could as they helped her into her dress for the debut tonight.

This was just one of the multitude of reasons that she didn't want to go; the required attire. Jareth warned her days ago that it was a tradition here in the underground when an important gathering is held that you wear something fitting for the _location_ rather than the _occasion_. A gathering taking place in a fairy ring meant wearing only organic or 'natural' clothing… if any at all… since it was out in the middle of the forest. Even though it was getting cold out Jareth had assured her time and again that it would be warm enough within the ring. Sarah's dress arrived just yesterday and she had been both stunned, awed, and taken aback by it when she had first seen it. Ishapell and Clora both assured her that it would be fitting… but it was made of plants for crying out loud! Lots and lots of plants. Grass and white moss and trails of white flowers were all crafted together to look like a beautiful minty green gown. But the fact that it was made of real and fragile plants still sat uneasily with Sarah and she was a little afraid of it falling apart on her.

If she had wanted to go to this thing Jareth's mother was holding for them the dress would have caused her hesitation, but the fact was that even before she knew what she would be wearing she hadn't wanted to go. The debut was basically just Jareth's chance to show off his prize possessions- she and Toby- to other members of the most elite aristocracy. Jareth had worded it more nicely than that when he explained it to her, but she could figure out well enough what he really meant by "informally but officially introducing you and my heir to others of our social standing."

As prissy as he made it sound, from what Ishapell and Clora had told her- which granted wasn't much- this was an occasion where a lot of snooty Royals got together to let their hair down and kick up a ruckus. According to Clora, fairy ring gatherings could get exciting if given half the chance.

"Pass me that clasp will you, Ish?" Clora muttered as she perfected the curls she had made in Sarah's hair.

They were likewise wearing dresses made of natural materials, Clora's being a tight-fitting and almost flashy number that was covered with flowers ranging in every shade of pink and purple. Ishapell had dressed more simply in a long gown made only out of wide green leaves. And her hair was held up with two sticks in a fashion that reminded Sarah of the chopsticks some of her classmates would wear in their hair back home. Jareth was helping get Toby ready in the nursery; Sarah already knew what he would be wearing. Toby would be kept in a diaper, but other than that he would just be allowed a white blanket for comfort and warmth. It had taken a lot longer for Jareth to convince Sarah it would be warm enough for _that_.

In just a couple hours they would all be on their way to the fairy ring for Sarah and Toby's debut. It was already the afternoon and they were set to arrive there by just after dusk. Jareth had explained to her in some detail about how these things were set to go over the past week since Toby had used his magic for the first time. They would mostly just spend tonight socializing and mingling with the other 'social elites' of the Underground. The upside to it all was that Jareth had mentioned that she would be allowed to drink if she wanted tonight.

She hadn't had to go through any more classes or spend days upon days practicing her etiquette thankfully since this would be a very informal gathering.

"Everyone will either be drunk or drinking by the time we arrive, why should they care if you don't curtsey properly?" Jareth had explained to her when she had asked about it a couple days ago.

He had obviously been swamped with work all week and if she didn't pester him during the day he would actually make an effort to be extra nice to her during her nights with him. He had given his libido a bit of a rest, and although the sex hadn't stopped, she had been allowed to spend nights in her own bed after their shared baths. He had been civil and nice to her… she suspected he was trying to keep her happy so this night could go as smoothly as possible.

"Almost finished Sarah," Ishapell informed her. Although she still wasn't on the level of friendship that she had been with Ishapell, seeing the two females every day throughout the week had turned the tension between her and both of Jareth's cousins to civility at least.

"I don't want to go," Sarah stated again, her tone flat with what she knew would ultimately be defeat.

"You would be wise to keep comments like that to yourself tonight." Clora snorted, moving one of Sarah's curls around like she was sculpting art upon Sarah's head. "You think Jareth is quick tempered… tell the queen that you don't appreciate the trouble she's gone to. I heard that females have disappeared from the courts just for sneezing her way."

Sarah scowled at Clora as best she could, which was pitifully since Clora had made her drop her head so she could get at some of the hair piled higher up. "I don't suppose I would have to. Wouldn't it be more _amusing_ for you to do so yourself?"

Clora tensed but was silent as the grave, hesitating only a moment before continuing like she had never even heard Sarah.

"My dear cousin won't be saying much tonight," Ishapell spoke up in a tone that was both smooth and almost taunting. "Or likely for many nights to come."

Sarah's ears perked up at that and she made to turn her head to Ishapell but Clora quickly turned her back without a word so she could finish Sarah's hair, biting down on her lip as she did so. "What does that mean?" Sarah asked anyway.

Ishapell was silent for a moment as if judging if she should say it right in front of Clora, who was still pretending that there was nothing in the room outside of Sarah's hair. "It seems that there were a lot of rumors flying outside the Labyrinth walls and into the ears of the Devine City."

"He had no proof at all it was me!" Clora snapped then, rounding on Ishapell. Sarah lifted her head now to see that the redheaded woman was red in the face, almost overshadowing her own hair. "I still say it could have been anyone, probably the goblins! Those simple and wretched creatures would talk just for the chance to spray spittle at someone!"

Ishapell was unfazed by her cousin's show of temper. Sarah still felt lost as the blonde fae reached out to touch her chin, turning her face to her as she started to paint Sarah's lips. "You better hope it wasn't the goblins, cousin of mine. After all, if it was them they would have no reason to stop and all the reason to spread more gossip. Then you would be in the pit."

"What's going on?" Sarah finally demanded, pulling back so she could speak without Ishapell accidentally painting half her face. Ishapell looked to Clora who simply rolled her eyes in annoyance and marched away, busying herself by going to the bathroom to check her own appearance in the mirrored wall there.

Ishapell let out a small sigh before going back to Sarah's lips. "Yesterday, after Clora and I finished helping you change for bed Jareth made it clear to our cousin that he was aware rumors about your marriage to him were being spread… things that would be hard for others to know… and that if they didn't stop right away then he would hold her personally responsible."

"He said that?" Sarah asked, in mild shock. Despite how many times he had 'chastised' her for her behaviors, it still seemed odd to her for some reason that he would do so to a member of his family.

Ishapell simply nodded her head.

"What rumors?"

"Distasteful ones. Don't purse your lips, Sarah, please. I can't get at them when you scowl like that."

"If there are rumors concerning me I should at least be allowed to know about them. What are they?" Sarah muttered back, making a half-hearted attempt to smooth out her scowl so Ishapell could finish quickly and be done. Her lips were the only thing to be painted tonight, per Jareth's request, and even then Ishapell was only using a light pink color to highlight them.

Ishapell let out a defeated little whine. "Some are hearing that Jareth threw you in the dungeon for the night, others say a week, but everyone is just speculating as to why you were there at all."

"Jareth did throw me in the dungeon for a night, and then chained me up for three more nights for trying to leave him," Sarah bit out venomously, her anger brewing at the bitter memories. "Those aren't rumors. They're truths!"

Ishapell cast a worried glance to the bathroom door where Clora had gone through before turning back to Sarah. "Please hush! No one else must know that you tried to run away."

"Why? What's the big secret?" Sarah asked, folding her arms across her chest, only to drop them for fear of crushing the plants.

"It's important for both you and Jareth that no one else ever know about it. Carrie tried to run away from him towards the end of their union at least a half dozen times. If others found out that you had already tried the same thing, two things could happen. One, Jareth would be considered a laughingstock and if he found out that someone might have even overheard you discussing it he would likely do something terrible. Two, another nobleman might consider it disgraceful and demand that Jareth make a more public example of you. Either way, it just means a lot more agony for you to endure for it."

Sarah couldn't help but glower and roll her eyes. It figured that she would end up on the worst end of it if shit hit the fan. Probably no one would even care about _why_ she had tried to run and would chalk everything up to it just being Jareth's own bad luck to have gotten two unruly wives in a row. Probably. "Clora's been letting these things get out?"

Ishapell shrugged at that. "No one is sure. Jareth suspects her is all." Ishapell finished and packed away Sarah's lip paint to return to her vanity. "Go ahead and look at yourself," she coaxed. "We have a limited time for changes if we need them."

Sarah turned and made her way across the floor to the bathroom. There was at least one bright side to this gathering… no shoes! She was not only allowed but _required_ to be barefoot there.

Clora was standing in front of the mirror wall, fluffing out the flowers on her dress so they would look more open. She glanced up when Sarah came in. "I don't blame you for not wanting to go to this gathering. What with everyone one there waiting to see you, to meet you, to judge you. That's what everyone is going to show up for after all. Like judges at a hippogryph show."

Sarah decided to ignore Clora's comments altogether and looked at her own reflection in the mirror. Her dress was indeed lovely and gave her a trim looking silhouette. Her hair was indeed a masterful work of curls that made her hair look huge and full. It looked good. She looked like mother nature, she decided.

She heard a knock on the door out in Jareth's room and knew that the men must be ready to go. She turned her back on Clora, who with a sigh followed her out into the bedroom once again. Ishapell was already opening the door to the hall and Sarah stopped dead in her tracks when Jareth and Mavid strolled into the room, Toby held securely in Jareth's arms against his hip. The fact that Toby was wearing next to nothing for this didn't surprise her, what did was the fact that Jareth and Mavid were both clad in only a little more. Mavid was wearing a loincloth made of some sort of animal skin, that only covered the bare minimum with just a flap in the front and one in the back connected by a cord made of the same thing. Jareth wasn't dressed much more decently, with his own loin cloth made of braided vines that hung down almost all the way to his ankles, with another vine crossed over his firm chest and one wrapped around his upper bicep, making him look like the enchanted being he was.

While Sarah had seen Jareth nude plenty of times he was always dressed up to the max in front of others. To see so much of his skin exposed in front of others seemed… naughty. Sarah could feel her face starting to blush.

Jareth was eyeing her over too, his mouth gaping a little as his eyes darkened. Sarah knew at once that she wouldn't get much sleep tonight and that her plant dress would be falling off her one way or another.

"Well, don't you two look… nice," Clora's voice cut in, her lashes batting against her cheeks as she took in the sight of the two males, her eyes currently locked on Mavid, who paid her no mind.

Sarah looked over at Ishapell, who appeared completely unaffected by the lack of covering on any of the males, though Sarah suspected if it did affect her at all she still wouldn't let it show.

Jareth stepped up to Sarah and barely touched his fingers under her chin, tilting her head up to look at him. "You look wonderful," he complimented her, dipping his head down to place a kiss against her lips.

Toby's arms shot out as he did so and Sarah had to quickly move her arms to catch the toddler who insisted on being held by her now. "Ma'ma!"

Her heart still froze at being called such a thing, but Jareth merely smiled encouragingly and allowed her to take Toby out of his arms. "Go to your mother then, little prince."

Sarah held onto Toby, placing a kiss on his head as she tried to block the awkwardness that had just taken place from her mind. She made a mental note to herself that Toby's curly hair was starting to get long, falling into his eyes almost. She would have to see about cutting it soon.

"Are we ready then?" Jareth asked, not bothering to wait for anyone's response before placing a hand on Sarah's waist to lead her from the room.

"Are Torik or Tallia coming with us?" Sarah questioned. She figured surely that Jareth would at least have Tallia come with them to see to Toby if she had to.

"No, they will be staying here tonight." Jareth simply informed her.

Since she wasn't concerned about it Sarah dropped the matter as Jareth's arm wrapped more securely around her and with her next step she found that she was suddenly no longer in the castle, but suddenly surrounded. It took a mere moment for her brain to catch on that Jareth had just side-a-long transported her and that they were standing in the middle of the fairy ring. She had almost fainted in the exact spot she was standing the last time she had been here. The ground and trees seemed back to normal from what she could see, though she couldn't see much.

She found her eyes trying to dart everywhere at once, taking in everything and nothing at all. The guests standing nearby her… she felt like she was in the middle of a costume party. One a Hollywood makeup artist might throw. But this was no costume party. A man walking by really did have sparkling golden skin… and was wearing no clothes whatsoever. The horns curling up from a woman standing next to her were really growing out from her skull, and the other woman making out with her was like looking at the offspring of a human and horned lizard. Behind them, a terribly thin and large bird-like being was throwing his head back to pour wine down his beak. Those were just the guests that were standing closest to her, but she could tell already that there were even more stunning sights to be held beyond them. The air smelled sweet and muggy at the same time and although plenty of the guests were laughing and shouting at each other you could still hear the music they were trying to be heard over. There was a band playing somewhere, though the music sounded like a cross between folk and heavy metal of all combinations.

Jareth's arm still held her tightly and he leaned down to talk to her before they could be noticed. " _Don't_ leave my side if you can help it. _Don't_ leave the fairy circle and absolutely _don't_ allow anyone else to hold Little Jareth."

"Anything I _can_ do?" Sarah hissed back over all the noise.

"They're here!" someone shouted before heads started turning to stare at them. Eyes of all colors and shapes and sizes were fixing on her and Sarah would have backed up if not for Jareth's arm around her.

"You can smile and behave," Jareth told her before smiling and nodding acknowledgment to some of the beings that were coming up to them.

Everyone was suddenly talking to both Jareth and her at once and Sarah held Toby securely in her arms, turning slightly to the side to shield him from the surging crowd.

"It's been so long since I've seen you, Jareth."

"It's another human bride!"

"Where are you from?"

"Oh, he looks just like you, your majesty."

"When was the wedding? All I got was an invitation to this début!"

"Did you bring more goblin wine?"

And about a hundred names and titles were thrown her way in the mix as creatures introduced themselves.

Jareth started moving forward into the crowd and Sarah had no alternative but to move with him, walking past creatures that were both dazzlingly beautiful and horribly grotesque and even some that were ugly in a way that looked like living art. Some resembled nothing even close to human-esk, and many were speaking in languages that Sarah didn't understand or wasn't sure were languages at all. She had no idea where Jareth was leading them and didn't have the chance or the will to look back and see if Mavid and Jareth's cousins were still following behind them.

Some of the guests were obviously drunk and she had to watch out when a large ogre-like creature almost backed into her because he was laughing so hard. She realized also as she was walking that she was closer to being called overdressed than she was anything else. While half of the beings there wore the same things as Jareth or Mavid, a good amount of creatures were completely nude, and although she couldn't identify sexual parts on some of them even if she tried, after seeing the twentieth one that she _could_ she tried to keep her eyes at neck level and higher, which was easier said than done because the range of height seemed to be anywhere from ten feet over her head to no taller than her ankle and she felt torn between trying not to step on anyone and at the same time not get stepped on herself.

Toby was looking around with an innocent and open curiosity at the beings around them as well from the safety of her arms and she wondered if maybe he would remember any of what he was seeing all around them and if it would affect him or not.

"Quiet the music, quiet it!" a voice shouted as they got further into the crowd.

The music stopped and the crowd seemed to split easier for them suddenly. Sarah looked up and saw that they were, in fact, approaching Jareth's mother and father, who were standing next to the high council and many other rather pious-looking beings of different races. King Hamold was dressed in what Sarah would have described as a toga made of thick black and grey fur and animal fangs hung from the king's neck and ears like jewelry. Queen Kaleen, however, was covered head to toe in nothing but drying red clay. Sarah tried hard not to stare but she knew that she would be blushing the whole night till they left. Everyone was just so… uninhibited… and the night had just started.

They both offered kind enough smiles to Sarah and Jareth before they bowed low to them, a gesture that was obviously part of this ceremony thing. Jareth pressed on Sarah's back and he bowed low in return. Sarah shifted her hold on Toby so she held his back and the back of his head as she bowed over double as well. When she straightened up she did so a little quickly and Toby squealed in delight and started laughing to show how fun he had thought that was. Sarah smiled and bounced him in her arms as many of the beings around them cooed in approval and Kaleen's smile widened. Even Hamold's expression softened as he watched his grandson's reaction.

Once Jareth straightened up too, the music started up again and everyone went back to their drinks and celebrating. While some shouted slurred congratulations at them the king and queen approached them and Sarah tried once more not to react at all as she took in the clay drying out and cracking around Kaleen's hands and torso or the fact that half of Hamold's chest was uncovered by the furs. It was just too weird to her to know so much of what the bodies of Jareth's parents looked like. She glanced over at Jareth but the fact that his father was wearing nothing but a fur half-slip and that nothing was left to the imagination on his mother seemed to not faze him in the least. There was something weird and surreal about all of it. With her, there was an emphasis on the _weird_ part though. She felt completely thrown by all of this and her face was still on fire as she noticed that coincidently Kaleen and Hamold had about the same size nips.

Kaleen was saying something to her about Toby being adorable but Sarah's eyes quickly went back to roaming around the crowd again and she found her mind drifting along with it. There was just so much to look at, so much to see. And people were doing such odd things. Most were just talking, but some were dancing and some were doing the most random of things. A very large tawny rabbit was standing up as if it were a man and reading from a book right in the middle of a group of people that were toasting to something about a green man. Not far away from that two satyrs with obvious erections seemed to be comparing themselves and a scrappy little brownie with a crown was arguing with a fallen leaf.

"Sarah," Jareth called her attention back to him. She looked over to see him looking at her with a knowing yet patient expression. "I know it's a lot for you to take in but try to focus. My mother was speaking to you and you didn't even notice when my parents left us."

Sarah glanced around to find that he was right, as embarrassing as that was. "I'm sorry," she muttered, her eyes drifting back to the crowd as Toby played with her hair. She could make an entire night just out of people -er, creature watching here. "It's all very distracting though."

Jareth placed his arm around her once more and pulled her closer before placing a kiss against her temple. "I know, but as I said, you must at least _try_ your best."

"A toast!" an elfin male shouted from right next to her, holding up a goblet of wine. "To the Green Man!"

All the elf's friends standing around him lifted their glasses too and Sarah watched in curiosity as they all said together "No matter how many times he is cut down, the green man will live again!"

They all cheered and drank down their wine and a few others standing nearby did the same. A drink was suddenly shoved into Sarah's free hand and the burgundy colored liquor spilled over the sides and onto her hand.

Toby reached for it but Sarah moved it far from his reach, causing him to make a face that said he would fuss soon if it wasn't brought back to him. Sarah was ready to start fussing too though and she nudged Jareth with her hip to get his attention since her hands were full. "Should Toby really be here? Everyone is getting drunk… and naked."

"There are a few guests that I want to see him before he has to turn in for the night," Jareth informed her as he took the wine glass from her, taking a drink from it himself.

X

She was overwhelmed, that was obvious. While his son was taking in all the sights around him with curious eyes and open heart, his wife was struggling to simply focus. Jareth would try to help her as best he could, but this was sure to all be very exciting for her. Instead of trying to take in everyone at once he would properly introduce her to some of his acquaintances. That way she could focus a bit more and possibly even make some friends… other women who could lead by example on how husbands in the underground were to be treated with _respect._

Jareth took another drink from the wine glass he had swiped from Sarah and turned to look at the plethora of guests within the fairy ring. He knew without seeing them that even more were on the outside and more still hidden a bit deeper in the woods for more… colorful celebrating. His eyes stopped roaming when he saw a thatch of red hair and he took hold of Sarah's free hand to pull her along with him, knowing that Mavid was sticking close and not worrying about if his cousins decided to socialize as well and split off from them. This wasn't their first gathering either after all.

X

Sarah glared at the back of Jareth's head as he dragged her through the bodies littered all around her. She clung onto Toby tightly and tried not to accidentally rub up against anyone, though she seemed to be the only one here worried about it as Jareth and Mavid both slid their way against others to get around and people would sometimes reach out to touch or rub against them as well in passing, trying to touch them or be touched or just to offer up more wine goblets.

She knew Mavid was right behind her but she still jumped slightly when his voice was right in her ear as they moved to an unknown location in the crowd. "The king of the pixies, Craw, and Queen Olay. Address them as Pixie King and Pixie Queen only and tell Olay she is the thinnest thing you ever saw."

Sarah turned her head back to question him, but a sharp jerk on her arm from Jareth had her turning her attention back around and her brain barely caught onto what Mavid had said before realizing that Jareth meant to introduce her to a couple standing in front of them. They were both probably about five inches shorter than her, with matching pale skin and bloodshot eyes. Their teeth were even sharper looking than that of the fae's and their hair was about shoulder-length and flaming red, flowing like silk. The only real visible difference between their genders that Sarah had to go on was that the queen's chest stuck out a tiny bit more than the kings. Even garment-wise they wore matching dried leaves around their slim hips so the exposed chests were the only difference between the two.

"Pixie King Craw and Queen Olay, this is my wife Sarah and my son Jareth," Jareth introduced her and Toby, "They both come from Aboveground. Sarah, King Craw's attendant is the female I plan to breed Mavid with."

Sarah couldn't help but blanch a little bit at that kind of introduction but she recovered and tried to smile as she returned the bows that the pixies were giving her. _Tell Olay she is the thinnest thing you've ever seen_ , Mavid had told her. Sarah had to agree that she just might be, although she seemed just as thin as Craw, neither one of them could have weighed more than maybe eighty pounds. She didn't want to just foolishly blurt out any more compliments, having learned one too many times already that she wasn't very good with either her timing or her delivery of them. So instead she simply smiled pleasantly at them both. "Oh, that's nice," she said since she couldn't think of anything better.

There were a couple moments of awkward silence then before Queen Olay finally broke the silence. "She really is a very pretty bride Jareth, there is certainly something to be said for the beauty of bigger girls."

Jareth simply gave a very curt nod of acknowledgment of his head and Sarah had to stop on that compliment for a moment. Had Olay just called her fat or something?

Sarah could feel her cheeks heat up as the other queen politely excused herself and her husband, leading him away with her. Jareth turned Sarah to him as soon as they were out of earshot and Sarah flinched at the scowl he and Mavid both gave her before Jareth turned his scowl on Mavid. "Did you remember to tell her about the weight?"

"I told her to say that Queen Olay was thin," Mavid hissed back, "It wasn't _my_ fault."

"What?" Sarah asked, completely lost to what had just all happened.

Jareth turned back to her. "Mavid told you to tell Olay she was thin?" he questioned her, his tone hushed but his face relayed just how annoyed with her he was.

"I- um yes, but I-"

"If Mavid tells you to do something tonight do it," Jareth snapped at her, cutting her off. "You don't know these people and I don't want you making enemies on the very night of your debut! Queen Olay is immensely proud of her thinness and small frame. She is so shallow that she favors anyone who praises her for it immediately. Otherwise, she tends to hold no liking for anyone. Since I am in negotiations with King Craw for the joining of our attendants in hopes of creating a suitable companion for our son I cannot have you upsetting Olay."

Sarah could feel her jaw hang open despite all the times she had been warned against such an action. "That doesn't even make any sense! I didn't call her fat or anything, why should she hate me just because I didn't point out how thin she was?! That's just stupid!"

"So is _she_ ," Jareth hissed back. "You're right, she is a very stupid female, but that's not the point. She has more say over her husband than that fool has over himself. If she decides she doesn't want his attendant to breed with Mavid than it likely won't happen."

As if that was any concern of hers. She still thought the whole idea of breeding was ignorant and backward. Knowing that would just greatly piss Jareth off even further she held her tongue and cast her glare down at the ground rather than at him, running her fingers through Toby's curls to calm herself.

Jareth continued to glare at her for a few minutes, but then let out a long sigh and seemed to relax a bit more. "If you get the chance again tonight, try to mention her figure being so petite. For the rest of the night, just _please_ do as you're told," he said, his tone pleading with her as he scooped Toby out of her arms and into his own. "I don't want this to be an unpleasant night for you either and if you listen to what you are told this can all go very smoothly and pleasantly enough," he continued, trying to reason with her. "I know you don't realize it now, but this night is important for both your future and little Jareth's. Good first impressions are vital."

Sarah fought not to roll her eyes as he scolded her like some sort of simple child. She could hardly care less if these 'people' liked her or not. She wasn't going to go out of her way to make enemies or anything like that though so all his lecturing was just annoying her honestly. "Fine," she huffed, ready for the conversation to be over.

Jareth hiked Toby up further in his arms and placed a kiss on his head before turning back to Sarah. "Stay by Mavid for the moment," he ordered her. "The vodyanoi prince is here and he absolutely hates humans. No matter what you do he wouldn't like you and you wouldn't like him. You can continue to socialize if you want but listen to anything Mavid tells you and stay inside the fairy r-"

"I know, you've told me at least fifty times already!" Sarah snapped, earning her a glare cold enough to make a single shiver run down her back.

"Do we need to have another talk about what constitutes as good manners and bad manners when we get home?" Jareth asked in a flat and merciless tone.

Sarah felt her cheeks heat up with embarrassment at the memories of what kind of punishments he would put her through. "No," she forced herself to say when he continued to wait for an answer.

"Then apologize and do as I have told you to," Jareth ordered her.

He was such a jerk. Sarah let out a sigh before doing as he said. "I'm sorry I took a tone with you."

Jareth accepted this and placed a kiss on her forehead. "I'll be right back.

Sarah fought once more to not roll her eyes as she was left with Mavid as Jareth went over to an old-looking man who looked soaking wet despite the lack of rain and had tinted green skin and a beard down to his knees. She glanced over at Mavid and he gave no expression whatsoever in return, that neutral mask firmly in place to hide anything he was feeling or thinking. Sometimes Sarah wished she could perfect a look like that, and other times she was glad she wasn't that cold and aloof. "What you did before, where you told me tidbits about the pixies… do you just know things like that about everyone here?"

The corner of Mavid's mouth pulled up into a smirk. "It's part of my duties to see that both you and Jareth are able to properly receive anyone in attendance tonight since this is your debut. So yes, I do know at least something about every person here if they are of any consequence."

"Do you know all these guests from past parties then or did you have to study or something?"

"I had to study for some of them," Mavid admitted in that toneless way he had of providing answers to her. "I have never seen some of these guests before in my life but for in pictures and paintings, I have memorized. Debuts tend to draw larger crowds though."

That was kind of interesting to Sarah. She turned to face him fully then. "So, you know about everyone here?" she asked again to clarify.

Mavid gave a firm nod of his head.

Amused and intrigued by this, Sarah looked around them at the guests, her eyes falling on a female with dark skin who had scales flashing here and there in clusters over her nude body and her black hair was styled in a way that reminded Sarah of a cobra's hood. She stepped closer to Mavid and subtly pointed her out. "What about her?" she asked.

Mavid laughed a little as he caught on to the little game she was playing, obviously also amused and willing to show off a little. "That is the naga Rizelle. She can turn her form into that of a giant snake and has a quick temper and poison filled mouth. Do not anger her and do not drink from anything she has. She hates dwarfs and likes talking about politics. She is not one of the ones you need to worry about impressing tonight."

Interesting.

Sarah pointed out a little brownie that was running through the crowd with four goblets of wine carried haphazard in his arms. "Him?"

" _Her_ , and that is just a party crasher looking for free wine."

"How about the creature over there with a lamb-like face and grey skin?"

"That is Dolce and he tries to steal kisses from _everyone_ at every gathering he goes to, try to avoid him," Mavid informed her. "Pay attention though because Lilith is approaching you, try not to talk to her too much but be polite. She likes to be lewd so if you need to excuse yourself from her I can introduce you to someone else."

Sarah whipped her head around just in time to see the woman approach her that Mavid had referred to. She was absolutely stunning honestly, with her body completely uncovered Sarah could see that she was about as curvy as they came, her body the stuff made for Playboy and her hair was richly dark like Sarah's and fell around her in thick waves. Her red lips and steely blue eyes just added to her appearance and Sarah felt almost bitter about how beautiful Lilith was compared to her.

She was a little surprised when Lilith extended her hand for Sarah rather than bow or anything. "You must be Sarah, my name is Lilith," she introduced herself. "You look absolutely beautiful."

Sarah did as Rally had taught her and reached out to give Lilith's hand a gentle squeeze but not to shake it in any way. "Thank you, it's nice to make your acquaintance."

Sarah's eyes flicked back to Mavid, surprised to see his mask gone now and he was just outright scowling at Lilith.

"You are from the Aboveground, right?" Lilith questioned, obviously starting up a conversation.

"Oh, yeah I- I mean, _yes_ I am."

"I was there once, lovely place. I think the area I was in was called Constantinople, are you familiar?" Sarah couldn't see what Mavid was scowling for. Lilith was very nice, and she was probably the first person to talk to Sarah directly rather than just talking about her to Mavid or something like she wasn't even there and capable of speech. Sarah couldn't help but kind of like this female.

"Not really," Sarah answered, not even sure if she had ever even heard of it before.

"Well, I must say that it made me positively adore humans… they tend to have the cutest butts on them, it almost makes up for their male's having on average slightly smaller endowments on the front. Course… I found that there were exceptions to even that." Lilith giggled with a wink. It was so unexpected Sarah had found herself laughing at that before she could help it. Lilith smiled at her reaction warmly. "How are you liking your stay in the underground?"

Sarah glanced back at Mavid again, who was still scowling. "It's… fine."

"I'm sure it hasn't been the most exciting experience for you yet, not being introduced and cooped up in the goblin city and all, but now if you ever get bored I would love to find you some excitement if you're interested in that. There are far too few females down here that are in any way interesting."

"Shall we go greet the fairy queen?" Mavid interrupted her, obviously trying to pull Sarah away.

What was his deal? He obviously didn't like Lilith for some reason but Sarah found that she kind of _did_ and wasn't ready to leave the only nice person here so soon. "In a minute, Mavid," she told him pointedly. Mavid narrowed his eyes at her but said nothing more.

"That's okay," Lilith smiled, showing that her teeth were perfect as well. "I'll be sure to find you later if you want."

"Yes, that would be nice," Sarah smiled back.

Lilith offered one last smirk and reached out to brush something off Sarah's collar bone before she could walk away. "You had something there," was all she said before leaving Sarah and Mavid.

Sarah turned back to Mavid, matching his annoyance look for look. "What was that about, she was nice to me."

Mavid rolled his eyes. "She is a female of ill-reputation and Jareth wouldn't appreciate you having a fondness for one like her."

"What does all that mean?" Sarah demanded.

"You are truly naïve. That means that she is a slut and you don't need to associate with her at all."

Sarah could feel her cheeks coloring at Mavid's crassness and felt almost defensive that he would say something like that about the one nice person she had met so far. She was about to argue but they were interrupted when a very large and scary looking creature covered in hair came up behind Mavid everything happened so suddenly that Sarah didn't even get a chance to scream when the monster wrapped it's large and hairy arm around Mavid's neck from behind and hoisted him right up off the ground! Mavid's arms locked onto the forearm of the creature to keep himself from choking and kicked his heel back hard right into the creature's shin, causing the beast to drop low in pain and once Mavid's feet hit the ground Sarah stood back in complete awe and fear as he flipped the much larger beast right over his head and onto the ground before him.

There was a loud **POP** and the beast was gone, replaced on the ground by a man!

Sarah wasn't sure if she felt more flabbergasted by the fact that the beast had shifted into this man or the fact that this man now laying on his back on the grass next to her was grinning ear to ear and laughing up at Mavid, who in return was grinning down at him!

"You grub-brained son of a Swedish troll!" Mavid gasped, panting to catch his breath, reaching out his hand to help the other male to his feet. "Next time you try that I'll break your neck I swear it," he laughed.

Sarah was weirded out the most by the way Mavid was acting more than anything else so far. She had never seen him acting so… natural. Almost like the boys back in her high school used to act around each other. In all the Underground, she never felt this shocked by anything else.

That changed quickly when the other male clamped his hand behind Mavid's head and the two leaned in to kiss each other. It was very brief and just a bumping of the lips, but it seemed like a very strange form of 'hello' to her and she knew her eyes were the size of saucers. The boys in her high school never did that with each other… not in front of her at least.

"So where is Jareth? I came here to see him, didn't I?" the new male questioned, looking around like he might spot him at any moment.

"Playing the good host with Kaleen and Hamold probably," Mavid answered casually.

As the two males talked Sarah took the opportunity to assess the male who had choked Mavid one second and kissed him the next. He was built like Jareth and Mavid, all lean and firm muscles and his skin was pale and smooth as alabaster. He was uncovered by anything and Sarah tried not to stare at his sex just like she had tried not to look at Lilith's, but all this flesh on display was a very new thing for her and she had a very hard time helping herself. The male was shorter than Mavid and Jareth, probably exactly her height and his hair was chestnut colored and wild and tangled around his head, sticking out in all directions like he had never even attempted use of a comb. He was handsome enough though, with a stick-straight nose and pouting lips filling out his thin face.

"He has a son I hear?"

"Indeed, I know he'll want you to see him before it's the young prince's bedtime."

The male's hazel eyes flicked to Sarah and that's when Mavid seemed to remember she was there. "Oh, this is Jareth's bride, Sarah. She comes from the aboveground. Sarah, this is one of Jareth's oldest and dearest friends, Loki, he spends most of his time pissing people off," Mavid smirked at the other male, who in return actually stuck his tongue out at Mavid.

"I only piss off those with no sense of humor," he replied, taking Sarah's hand in his. Sarah had thought he would kiss her knuckles, but instead got the shock of her life when he stepped right up and kissed her on the lips as he had Mavid before stepping back. Her discomfort must have shown on her face because the wild looking fae, Loki, grinned at her and winked. "Don't worry, any love of Jareth's is like a sister of mine."

Loki stepped to the side and it was only when he wrapped his arm around a female standing nearby that Sarah even noticed she had been standing there in the background this whole time. The girl was very pale-looking, with long blond hair pulled into braids atop her head and she wore a sleeveless white dress made of flowers that looked like balls of cotton. Her hand rested atop what was obviously a pregnant stomach and even though it was covered Sarah found she had a slightly harder time not looking at that. "This is my youngest bride, Cleo," he introduced the girl. "She is about twenty human years. That's close to your age isn't it Sarah?"

Sarah simply nodded her head. _Youngest bride_?

Loki turned his head like he was looking for someone before giving up. "My first bride is around here somewhere. I'm sure you'll get to meet her later. She's likely just ransacking one of the wine fountains to prepare for the forest dances."

"Tell me you two will not try that move you did last time," came a familiar drawl from behind Sarah's shoulder, "I swear I've never seen a group of gremlins look so terrified."

That grin was back on Loki's face and Sarah stepped to the side so Jareth could greet him, her eyes bugging once again as Jareth turned partially to the side so Toby wouldn't get crushed as he and Loki kissed. "It's good to see you again, Jareth, congratulations mate," Loki beamed as he ruffled Toby's curls. "Both your wife and son are beautiful."

"I must congratulate you too," Jareth smiled tightly, nodding to Cleo and her pregnant belly. "I'm very happy for you, don't think I'm not, but Loki what is she doing here in her state? I would have more than understood her not being able to make it. Or you for that matter."

Sarah scowled at Jareth from behind his back. So, she wasn't the only one who got talked about like she wasn't there. Cleo just continued to stand there, her hands on her stomach as her eyes roamed around the crowd in much the same way as Sarah must have done earlier. She didn't seem to mind Jareth speaking about her rather than to her like Sarah would have.

"I know, I know. But you understand she begged me and when they are pregnant it's hard to argue with them all the time."

Jareth's face suddenly went solemn and Loki looked like he had just horrified himself as well. "I didn't- Jareth I didn't mean to say…"

"I know," Jareth sighed, obviously trying to shake it off. Sarah realized Loki's slip then. He _didn't_ understand… sure Jareth had Toby now, but he hadn't been there for the actual pregnancy or birth at all. Obviously, that knowledge hurt him.

Jareth's expression perked up the slightest bit after a moment. "There is time to find out yet though," he said, his free hand snaking around Sarah's waist.

She had felt sorry for him a second ago, but now she almost wanted to bat his hand away. He knew she didn't want to have his children.

Loki's expression perked up too and he offered Sarah a warm look. "Of course. That reminds me though, have you received your invitation?"

"Probably, I've been so busy though lately, but we wouldn't miss it for the world."

"Well you're of course welcome there, you too Mavid, Braxton will get a hold of you."

Sarah was lost again. She had a feeling that that was going to happen a couple times tonight at least.

Loki turned to Sarah then. "Have you ever been to a baby shower before Sarah?"

Oh, was that was the talk of invitations was about then? She had only ever been to one when she was younger for one of her distant cousins, but that still should count so she nodded her head.

"Excellent, I will see you at Cleo's then," Loki beamed.

Sarah could gather up a tight smile. Honestly, that didn't sound very fun at all, but she wasn't going to argue it in front of Cleo and Loki; that would be just rude and far be it from her to hurt a pregnant girl's feelings. Behind Loki, Cleo was still holding her stomach and staring off wordlessly. Sarah couldn't help but shudder despite herself, was that what Jareth pictured her as someday being?

Jareth's hand started to rub up and down her side just then and she somehow managed to suppress her urge to jump. "I hate to excuse us old friend, but…"

"Oh no no no, it's fine. Go mingle. I'll be taking Cleo back home soon, but I'll be back later for more celebrating. You can count on it."

Loki, Mavid, and Jareth all kissed once more, and then Loki kissed Sarah, again surprising her, and then Jareth kissed Cleo- also surprising Sarah.

Sarah looked up at Jareth questionably as he led her away. "What do you think of Cleo?" Jareth asked Sarah offhandedly.

The girl hadn't said a word… was she supposed to have an opinion of her? "She's… quiet," Sarah shrugged. She looked up at Jareth then. "You didn't seem too pleased to see her here."

Jareth let out a little sigh and nodded his head, not even trying to deny that she was right. "So much can go wrong during a pregnancy. When a female is expecting it is extremely rare to find them out and about. She will be due very soon and so although Loki is dear to me I still find it absolutely inappropriate that she be in a setting like this where anything can happen." Jareth smoothed out the cross look on his features before turning to her again. "Let's end this discussion before I get stuck on it."

"Where are we going now?"

"There is someone here I know you'll want to meet," was all he told her.

Sarah kept quiet and looked over the guests some more as they made their way through, pausing momentarily when they passed by a group of four women all crooning together while onlookers watched and drank. All were slim and nude, their long and straight hair falling down their backs in different shades of blue and green as they harmonized. It sounded very beautiful but what gave Sarah such pause was that on all four of their necks they wore a thick iron collar with a chain dangling down their bodies connected to stakes that were shoved very deep into the ground.

"Sirens," Jareth had whispered to her as she looked on. "They are wonderful sounding but they are also cannibals, which is why no one should get close to them."

He pulled her further along before she could gape and Sarah was surprised when they got almost all the way across the fairy ring and the music changed, indicating that somewhere over here was another music source. This one was instrumental though. And the music was like listening to folk performed by some sort of heavy metal band. She was curious to see it, but Jareth continued to escort her through the sea of strange and awe-inspiring faces and bodies that continued to rub against them now and then as they passed by.

Jareth finally brought her up to a man who was tall and slender, though very old, talking with an imp about the science of all things. He wore a long robe made of snake skins, with hanging sleeves. He had a very fair, clear sanguine complexion and a long beard as white as milk that hung down to his stomach even though his head was bald. He didn't seem like one of the fae… he seemed normal, despite the snake-skin robe. He seemed in almost as much awe at the spectacle around him as she was though, which led Sarah to wonder if maybe he wasn't human.

The only other human she knew down here was a 'pet' so she was instantly interested to find out if he was maybe even a half-breed like Toby.

The man ended his conversation with the imp and turned to Jareth as he saw their approach. "My Lord," He greeted Jareth, bowing low.

Jareth did not return the bow but acknowledged it with a nod of his head. "Sarah, I am pleased to introduce you to Dr. John Dee. Dee is a mathematician, scientist, alchemist-"

"And about twelve other boring things," Dee gently interrupted with a humorous smile formed under his massive beard. Even in no more than he said, Sarah could tell he had a thick English accent.

Jareth smiled back and turned back to Sarah. "Dr. Dee is the only human to ever find his own way into the Underground."

Sarah couldn't help but be interested in that as she turned back to the elder man who was also from the aboveground… and had found a connection between them.

"I understand that you and young Prince Jareth are from there as well," Dr. Dee smiled to her.

Sarah glanced over at Toby, who was starting to fuss in Jareth's arms because he wanted down. He would need to be put down to bed soon. She was finding it slightly odd to hear others referring to him as Prince Jareth, but she supposed that that was honestly what he was… still… he was supposed to just be _Toby_. "Um… yes, that's right. From America."

Dr. Dee's eyes bugged at that. "Goodness really?! Have they started sending women over there too or are you half savage?"

 _Ah… what?_ "I… I'm Caucasian, I don't think there is any Native American in me, but I guess you never know, America being the melting pot after all."

Dee stared at her blankly for a moment. "Dear, you've lost me. Caucasian?"

He was obviously from a different time… she wondered when and where. "Caucasian is just another term for saying someone is white skinned."

"My stars, what year was it when you came here?"

"Uh… 2011."

Dr. Dee was very silent and still then. After a moment or two, a small smile started to lift the corners of his lips. "My… stars! When I came here it was 1608... Four hundred years…"

Sarah was stunned too. Had he been here for over four hundred years in Aboveground time? The thought frightened her a bit with all its implications. She would eventually be here that long too, wouldn't she? Her heart plummeted into her stomach.

Next to her Toby finally let out a cry to show he had had enough and was ready to go.

"You know," Dee spoke up, dragging her out of her saddened thoughts. "I was a right-hand man to Queen Elizabeth of England. I know you are busy tonight, but -with your husband's permission- I would be very interested in visiting the goblin kingdom someday to discuss this a lot more with you. Four hundred years… no doubt the world has changed."

"I would love that!" Sarah exclaimed before she could stop herself. She certainly did want to talk to this man more. So many questions were already balanced on the tip of her tongue and waiting to spill out, like how he found his way here, how he knew this world was here at all, why he would willingly come here…etc.

"We shall see about arrangements and I'll send word to you, Dee," Jareth agreed as he shifted a flailing Toby around in his arms.

At the dismissal, Dee stepped away from them to talk with someone else and Jareth held out Toby for Sarah to take. "Say good night to him, Sarah," he told her.

"Aren't we going too?" Sarah asked, a part of her still hoping the answer was yes.

"No, there is still far too many that I wish for you to meet. I will have Mavid escort him to my parent's castle tonight and we will pick him up on the way back to the Labyrinth."

There was no arguing with him and Toby was still fussing in her hold, so Sarah said a little good night and placed kisses over Toby's face where she could despite his wriggling. When she was through Mavid took him from her and held him securely against his chest before dissipating right on the spot.

Once they were completely gone, Jareth turned back to Sarah, his expression soft as he wrapped his arms around her and placed a tickling kiss against her neck. "You do look absolutely breathtaking tonight," he told her, nuzzling the flesh he had just kissed and sending little shocks up and down her body. His arms and torso were still very nude and she wrapped her arms around him to keep from falling back, but her hands stroked over his skin to feel the smooth warmth. His fingers came up to dip into the front bodice of the dress. "Are you ready for this to come off?" he purred into her ear.

She was… but in a more practical sort of way. The way he was acting though, she could tell he was asking for it to come off _now_. While it wouldn't stand out for her to be nude in this crowd, she still wasn't sure she would be comfortable like that. To walk around outside totally and utterly exposed… was a bit frightening to think about. "No," she answered.

Jareth let out a sigh at her answer and stepped back, holding his hand out for her to take as he seemed to get a hold of himself. "Come with me."

She didn't have a choice and the night had to continue some time, so she took Jareth's hand. It was to her utter shock when Jareth grasped her hand and stepped over the barrier of mushrooms and out of the fairy ring. Sarah allowed him to pull her along with him, but she had her doubts, "You said not to leave the fairy ring," she reminded him nervously.

"By yourself," he corrected her. "You are with me though." He continued to pull her along behind him, the slight chill in the air hitting her skin as soon as she was out of the ring and the grass was a little less soft under her feet. She followed along as Jareth pulled her meaningfully away from the circle and into the darkness of the forest beyond, the trees stopping the light of the moon with their still semi-thick leaves and the sound of the music in the gathering started to fade away behind them.

Sarah almost screamed when a figure ran across the path in front of them and into the hidden shelters of the bushes, but Jareth was completely unphased by it. Sarah finally pulled against his hold when she heard someone laughing in the distance. "Jareth, let's go back." she was afraid to be out here, she couldn't even really see where she was going and it was obvious they were not alone out here tonight. It was like she could sense not just someone watching them, but like the whole forest was. Jareth ignored her as he pressed on, seeming almost unaware of the noises and voices coming from the cover of the forest around them.

Sarah pulled back against him again and this time he didn't stop, but instead turned around and grabbed her, pulling her tight against him and she yelped when his mouth found hers, taking advantage of her scream to deepen the kiss. His hands came up to the back of her head to hold her immobile and in place as his soft and hot tongue stroked over her own, causing her mind to go fuzzy and she subconsciously closed her eyes and allowed herself to forget her fear for the moment and enjoy the terrific skill Jareth could kiss her with.

She let out another startled noise when Jareth fell back onto the ground, pulling her on top of him as he did so. She wanted to ask him what he was doing, or where exactly this was going, but Jareth allowed none of it as he flipped them over so she was pinned between him and the ground, his lips still locked on hers as his hands started to roam further down.

Sarah could finally bring her hands up and pushed against his chest till she was able to at least turn her head away, taking in air quickly while she could as Jareth's lips sought out her neck instead, his hands coming up to grope her breasts. "What are you doing?" she gasped, a shiver running down her spine as he ran his tongue over her collarbone.

Jareth straddled her hips and she could tell now that there had been nothing under that loincloth of his and it was now obvious where he planned for this to end up.

Sarah jumped when she heard another bout of laughter from somewhere close by, surprised when Jareth continued as if it had never happened. There was no way he hadn't heard it though.

"Jareth, stop," she gasped, pushing against his shoulders because she wasn't about to do this when just anyone could happen upon them. "Stop for a second," she insisted when he just continued to rove his hands and lips over her.

She almost screamed when Jareth ripped a handful of the flowers on her bodice right off her dress, ruining it from further wear. "Jareth!" she yelped, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Shhh." Jareth leaned back to straddle her once more, bringing his hand up and letting the flowers he had taken from her gown flutter down onto her, a look of reverence on his face as he watched them fall upon her skin and hair.

If this were happening somewhere else, like back at the castle, or even in the garden Jareth had created where things were a lot more private, she might have found it in her to actually enjoy the worshipful way he was looking at her, his hands much gentler now as they slipped underneath her own to stroke over her chest, the chill in the air causing her to shiver all over as her breasts tightened and puckered in a way that practically begged for the warmth of his mouth as his cool fingers rubbed over her little peaks.

Here though, in the middle of a crowded forest with a party full of mystery guests not even fully out of earshot, she wasn't in the mood for this and gripped Jareth's wrists instead, fixing him with a glare to show she was serious as she tried to move his hands away. She let out a shocked yelp and her hands fell back to her sides when Jareth's hands clamped down on her chest hard enough to send a small jolt of pain through her.

X

She was nervous to be out here like this, Jareth could plainly see that. Nervous because it was new to her. He would show her it was nothing to be afraid of to make love in the un-inhibiting outdoors though; she would likely even find that there was a great thrill to it. He had wanted her all night, ever since he had seen her in her flowered gown he had just wanted to get her alone so he could ravish her. There was no reason he couldn't have her now. They would still have to get back to the party so she could meet a few other important guests, but now there was no rush to do so before his son was sent to bed. He hadn't been keen on leaving the warmth of the fairy ring for this, but he knew if he had tried to take Sarah right there in the middle of all those drunken guests she would have absolutely freaked out on him. She was still far too new to the possibilities of pleasure to be thrown into something like that anytime soon… baby steps.

Even now, though he had taken her away from the masses of onlookers who were probably starting to really let loose back in the ring and opted for this more semi-private spot for her comfort, she still glared up at him and tried to throw his hands from her.

 _Let her try to stop this_ , he thought smugly, his mind already feeling the warming effects the slight buzz the potent goblin wine had given him. He marveled over the plush feel of her breasts beneath his palms, watching the way the skin moved as he moved them in small circles, his thumbs running back and forth over her hard little buds.

She glared up at him when he ignored her verbal protests and pulled at his wrists to make him stop. He squeezed her hard and briefly, his goal accomplished when her hands fell back from his. Laying on the ground beneath him, the white flowers he had taken from her resting in her curled hair and on her creamy skin… it was almost poetic how beautiful she looked and it reminded him of a forest nymph. The thing about nymphs was that they were quite hard to catch, but if you were lucky enough to get a hold of one the sex was always well worth it. He knew it would be even better than that with Sarah because he wanted her even more. He had caught more than one nymph in his time and could go about this the same way, making sure she couldn't escape him, but at the same time giving her the freedom she would need to participate once he got her feeling it.

Jareth brought his hands down from her chest, his lower body holding hers pinned to the ground as he ripped the fragile dress fully open in one quick jerk that caused Sarah to yelp.

"Jareth no! I don't have anything else to wear!" she whined, upset with him for the moment.

He didn't care about the dress though, taking in the sight of her body and easily ripping his own wrap off him, thankful he had passed on the idea of fur since the pants easily fell away from them both once they were torn. She was shivering from head to toe in what was probably an equal cross of nerves and the cold, shock on her face as he wrapped his arms around her and brought her up to him, holding her against his chest as he knotted his hands in the curls of her hair, holding her still so he could kiss her just the way he wanted again.

She shivered again and although she made a very slight noise of protest, she was still pressing herself against him for warmth.

Knowing her modesty would keep her from trying to run away from him now, Jareth stood up from his straddling position. "Get on your knees," he commanded, his voice sounding husky and deep even to his own ears.

Sarah stared up at him with wide and imploring eyes as she tried to cover her chest and at the same time wrapping her arms around her for warmth. "Jareth please… not here at least. Let's go back to the castle, back to your room."

Jareth took hold of her shoulders and twisted her around, forcing her onto her knees with her back to him. She didn't give much resistance, being more occupied with trying to keep herself as covered as she could. Jareth knelt on the ground behind her, lust completely clouding his mind over as he reached out and took hold her hips, pulling them up to him as he kneed his way between her legs behind her.

"No!" She gasped, as she fell forward, having to bring her hands away from herself to the ground to catch her.

Jareth reached down and positioned himself to enter her, only to be annoyed when he found that she had reached down to cover herself with one of her hands while the other one supported her. "I said no!" she hissed back at him.

He should have gotten her drunk first he thought to himself belatedly. Maybe he would just have to do that later when they returned to the ring.

Jareth pulled his hand back and smacked her hard right on her presented cheek, causing Sarah to cry out loudly as her hand moved from her crotch to her ass to try and dull the pain. Jareth could hear another scream echoing hers from somewhere else in the forest. They apparently weren't the only ones having fun out here. This gave him the chance he wanted though and while Sarah's hand instinctually shot to her pained buttock Jareth entered her in one hard thrust, the moan she made going straight to his groin and he almost lost himself upon just entering her because of it.

Sarah had to bring both her hands back down to the ground to keep herself upright as he started drilling into her, going hard and fast and the noises she made with each thrust was like music to his ears. Better than any song she could have ever sung to him as he rode her hard, the cold lost against their now heated skin.

Sarah was saying his name repeatedly, panting it as he gripped her hips hard and forced her to move against him. He could feel not only how hot she was around him, but how wet she was and for all her protests he could tell as he moved inside of her that she was getting wetter still. He reached up on impulse and fisted her hair tightly, pulling her head back so her mouth was forced open wider and the noise she made was loud and almost feral sounding, his eyes practically rolling in his head as pleasure shot through him and he knew he was close to his end. Keeping his hand in her hair, he slowed his pace a bit to keep himself going a little longer, forcing her head down to the ground as he moved up a little higher behind her.

Unable to move in her position, Sarah had no choice but to lay there, moans spilling from her mouth despite herself as he pumped into her, his hand on her hip moving back to her cheek, squeezing the flesh there tight as he admired the size and shape of her pert globes. Jareth brought his hand up and sucked on his finger, coating it thickly with his spit as he continued to consider her.

X

She was on fire and ice cold all at once all over her body. There wasn't one part of her she wasn't hyper aware of, from the beads of sweat forming on the small of her back, to the way the dirt under her knees formed little grooves from the pressure being placed on it or the way she could feel every inch of Jareth's cock as he slid quickly in and out of her, feeling it, even more, when he slowed down. Her head felt hot from the pinpricks of pain he was inflicting on her scalp as he pulled at her hair, but truthfully even that felt good.

For as hyper aware of her body and of Jareth as she was, outside of that she had no clue what was going on around her. Even though she was ashamed to admit it, this felt good. The fact that they were outside felt like the most natural thing in the world to her. After all, hadn't her ancient ancestors been doing this since the dawn of time? The way Jareth drilled into her from behind like he was… it was like they were nothing more than mere animals and for some reason, Sarah felt a sort of very basic and instinctual connection with the world around her for it. It was like nothing she had ever experience or could explain, and it frightened her at the same time that it thrilled her. She just knew she wasn't afraid enough to want it to stop.

Sarah spasmed, however, when she felt Jareth's hand on her ass and had the sensation of a slight burning pain back there. Her eyes shot open at her realization of his intention and suddenly the world came swarming at her again. His hand tightened in her hair to keep her head immobile when she tried to turn to him. "Jareth NO! Don't do that!" she shouted at him over her shoulder, shocked that he was doing… _**that…**_ to her ass.

"I'm only in as far as the first knuckle Sarah," his calm voice came back at her. "Just relax. I will not be taking your last virginity tonight, princess. You will need more preparation for that."

He started to rock his hips against her again, keeping his finger motionless for the moment as sensations of pleasure tempted her to relax a bit despite the tight feeling in her backside. If her eyes could have gotten any wider than they already were they would have when Jareth did finally move his finger. He didn't move much, and she could tell he wasn't going any deeper into her; playing around the rim instead. It was a whole new sensation all together to feel him moving in and out on both sides of her down there. Sarah couldn't even think through the pleasure that flooded her brain when he started moving in time at both points and he was gentle enough that it no longer hurt, but caused her body to shiver and sweat and writhe with a whole new level of awareness. Like before, she didn't really know if it hurt or felt incredible, just that whatever it was felt way more intense than before and she let go as Jareth rammed his smooth shaft into her hard and fast, deep noises emitting from the back of his throat and Sarah felt a familiar and wonderful pressure building inside of her and she wondered if she might literally explode from it, finding that she didn't care even if she did.

She was almost there when Jareth twisted his finger in just such a way and her muscles clamped down on him as her mind completely blacked out and she screamed when she came harder than she ever had before in her life.

X

I know I know it certainly wasn't 2011 when Sarah went to the underground and I'm fairly certain the movie was filmed in England (setting was America though) and there might be a historical slip here or there with Dr. John Dee (who is a real historical figure) I'm not sure.


	33. Chapter 33

Beta for this chapter is The Art of Suicide

X

"That was amazing," Jareth gasped, trying to catch his breath as he placed kisses over her shoulders and neck, slowly untangling his hand from her hair. Beneath him, Sarah was panting too, just as exhausted.

Jareth shook his head, trying to clear it as he collected himself. When he finally went soft and slipped out of Sarah she pulled away from him, turning around to sit on the ground. Even though she didn't look at him she didn't keep her back to him either. She stared at the ground in front of her, stunned.

"You're not hurt, are you?" he asked, even though he knew she wasn't. He asked just because he wanted her to realize that and admit it.

Sarah was silent for a minute, shifting her weight around a little as if to see. "I- no… I just… you didn't even ask." A frown started to creep back to her face. Her anger was starting to come back to her. "And you… you ripped up my dress! What am I supposed to wear now?!" she practically hissed at him.

Jareth couldn't help but chuckle at that. "Did you not even notice that most of the guests are already either nude or on their way there?"

She brought her knees up to her chest and crossed her arms over herself, a solid glare on her face now. "You know, I remember you getting very mad at me once before just for exposing my knees to Mavid. Now you don't care if complete strangers all have a gander. What is that about?"

She was just determined to be angry with him it seemed. "It was extremely inappropriate for you to do that in a setting and time that did not warrant it."

"That doesn't make any sense," she hissed.

Jareth felt his own patience being tested just the slightest bit and took a deep calming breath. "Let me try explaining it another way. Did you ever go skinny dipping or streaking?"

Sarah narrowed her eyes at him. "I'm seventeen, I only ever did that once and only with my girlfriends."

"Was it as inappropriate to be nude with them as it would have been… say in the middle of your little school?"

"When you twist it like that-"

"I am twisting nothing, it would be appropriate for you among friends when everyone had already decided it would be okay, enjoyable even, but it most certainly would have been embarrassing and wrong for you to be running around elsewhere in the buff. I am twisting nothing when I simply try to give you examples you can understand."

She kept her arms crossed over herself, turning her head to scowl at nothing … most likely she was just scowling at the situation she was in now. After a moment of her just sitting there and fuming she snapped her scathing gaze to him once more. "Well I know this much; I had a choice to go nude or not when I went skinny dipping with Mandy and Rachael. I chose _yes_ then. If I get a choice now… I choose no." Her eyes were full of challenge and she spoke slowly as clearly to him. "So… do I get a choice?"

He could hear the anger that was just waiting to unleash behind her words depending on his answer. Jareth weighed his options for about a moment, making up his mind quickly when he saw that there really was no point in pushing her further. "Very well then, you needn't go back to the party unclothed, but we _do_ need to return to the party."

He brought himself to his feet, pulling Sarah up with him by her hand. She was reluctant to stand, being less able to cover herself, but at length, she did so.

This would be difficult for him to do since he wasn't really the type of being that could just make plants grow wherever he wanted them, and he couldn't make anything nearly as pretty and lavish as what Sarah had been wearing. None the less Jareth picked up the discarded dress and tore away the skirt of woven moss and vines to use.

"What are you going to-"

"Don't interrupt me," Jareth told her, already focusing on what he was doing as he brought the skirt up and wrapped it around Sarah like one would a towel. Sarah held it in place without being asked to and Jareth narrowed his focus on his hand, willing his magic to collect there rather than in one of the crystals he was more accustomed to. When his hand started to lighten in shade he placed it against the dress where it wrapped around her, the plants writhing under his hand as soon as he touched it, and Jareth concentrated long enough for them to knot onto each other. Coaxing a very tiny but pretty purple flower to bloom under his hand at the very forefront of her dress. When he was finally certain that it wouldn't fall off her he took his hand away and considered his work.

He would have never been able to construct a whole new dress for her, thankful that the skirt had been mostly spared and feeling just a little bitter that he had had to bother fixing her dress at all.

It was done now though, and Jareth was more than willing to get back to the warmth of the fairy ring at this point. _He_ was perfectly willing to return in the buff.

X

What had once been a grand dress was now just a little tube-dress but Sarah was happy enough with it just the same. Jareth had seemed to her to have had a hard time fixing it, merely sealing it so it wouldn't fall open or off her, but honestly, she hoped it _had_ been tough for him. Hopefully, he would remember that the next time he ripped off her clothes.

"If you're remotely satisfied with your coverings may we return to the ring?" Jareth huffed, obviously a little peeved with her. She couldn't imagine for what though.

"You're the reason we are all the way out here in the first place," she pointed out, wishing she hadn't when he squeezed her chin between his thumb and forefinger and made her face him.

His intense eyes narrowed on her once more. "You ought to be grateful to me for that, Precious. If it had been entirely up to me we would have never left the fairy ring for that. Since I brought you out here for your comfort it is _your_ fault."

By what could have only been a miracle Sarah kept her mouth shut and her eyes from rolling. He was insane if he was really trying to tell her it was her own fault he wanted to get it on. Like he was doing her any favors.

Sarah couldn't help but be a little proud of herself. Usually, when Jareth started twisting things around like that he was so skilled at it that she couldn't keep up. She still was a long way off from having the skill to argue with him on the same level, but either he was being lazy or she was getting better at weeding her way back to the main points of the issue because that time she had seen right through his twisted logic. He was just pious enough to allow himself no fault in this.

He was really trying to convince her that even though _he_ wanted sex- not her- that he had been bending to _her_ will by taking them away from the eyes of onlookers for it. _What a load_ , Sarah huffed to herself as Jareth dropped her jaw from his hold, turning to head back to the fairy ring. The only reason Sarah didn't argue with him was that she knew it would do absolutely nothing and now that she was clothed she didn't care enough to try. She was cold and she just wanted to get back to the warmth of the fairy ring too.

They had only made it a few steps when suddenly Jareth stopped and his head snapped to the right like he had heard something. Sarah stopped too but didn't hear anything. She watched Jareth attentively for any clues as to why he had stopped so suddenly. "Jareth?"

He finally looked back at her, as if considering if he should do something or not, then reached back and took her hand, pulling her with him off the beaten trail. "There is music over here," he whispered to her. "Keep silent."

She didn't hear anything still. Did he have like super ears or something? Sarah tensed when suddenly she indeed did hear it. There was music out here, though it was only the sound of one lone fiddle it was beautifully played. Jareth crouched down and she did the same on instinct. The cheerful sound of the fiddle becoming much louder and clearer.

Jareth came up to a large bush and with a wave of his hand, it moved over as much as its roots would allow, giving them passage. The first thing Sarah saw on the other side of the bush was what looked like a young faun, kicking up its goat-like hind legs in a dance, its fiddle never once slipping a beat and Sarah could see curled ram's horns catching glimpses of moonlight from within his wild dark hair. She had never seen anyone moving about while playing the violin, but this creature was everywhere.

The second thing she saw was that this creature was surrounded by others. She hadn't seen them at all at first. Most of them were down on the ground; paired up, in groups, or even solo, and all were going at it like frenzied rabbits.

She didn't mean to see, but once she did it was like her eyes were locking onto things all on their own, jumping around all the thrusting and undulating bodies of creatures both familiar and foreign to her. She noticed the Councilman Tavin and his body-building human attendant, Henson, not too far away, Tavin watching with another male on his lap while Henson tackled two others at once beneath him.

Sarah felt her cheeks heat up till she felt like she was being baked, but her cheeks flamed just a tiny bit more when she felt another warmth start to settle between her legs as Henson made the males beneath him moan in ecstasy. Sarah felt her mouth drop slightly when she saw for herself that Tavin's pet could, in fact, put a horse to shame with his size. She would have been terrified herself, but the two he was alternating with obviously loved it.

Sarah was able to pull her eyes away from that when she heard a short scream and her eyes snapped over to another scene taking place between a fae woman and some sort of birdlike male and what she saw there almost made her lose her lunch, her stomach clenching tight as she gagged and turned away completely, collecting herself quickly.

Jareth's hand on her shoulder made her snap her attention back to him. His face was a solid and expressionless mask as he took in her reactions.

Sarah was about to ask for them to head back when someone hissed Jareth's name, drawing both their attentions back to the pulsing bodies.

Sarah couldn't have blushed more if she had tried, her eyes swiveling around to find that it had been Dominix that had called out to Jareth.

The other blonde male was likewise unclothed, and Sarah got a solid eyeful as both a male and a female buried their heads in his crotch. His bright blue eyes roamed over first Jareth, then Sarah and she could almost feel his gaze like it was hands on her skin. The look on his face made it clear that he would be happy to make that so for both of them. "Are you going to join the dance?" Dominix asked Jareth, his voice edged with strain as he gripped the back of the female's head to better direct her.

 _This was a dance?_ Sarah thought with disbelief as she looked over the grounds briefly once more. The half-goat fiddler was still dancing all around, playing his music as he moved around the bodies, miraculously not meeting any of them as the fiddle's wild music cut through the night. Just behind that Sarah could hear all the sounds of moans and sucks and slaps and other noises she had never heard before in her life and goose bumps broke out all over her skin.

Jareth ran his fingers down her arm and she spun back to face him, the same expressionless look still on his face. "Did you wish to join the dance? It's a lot easier to stand the cold if you do."

She felt neither hot nor cold at the moment, and curious little shivers ran all over her body and when Dominix suddenly arched his back and let out a grueling moan she felt something even stronger and more demanding pang through her. Everyone here was 'dancing' and everyone was more than enjoying themselves, no one would mind if she joined or not. Still, though, Sarah couldn't push down her own conservations far enough and after a second's hesitation, she shook her head firmly. "N-no."

There was no reaction on Jareth's face at her answer, good or bad. He simply nodded his head once in understanding. "Not on this night, no. We will head back to the party."

Dominix shuddered from what was happening to him and gave a nod of his head to show he had heard them. "Sarah this is Mab, the fairy queen," he gasped in a way that was somehow still offhanded.

Sarah was stunned to the ground as the female rose her head from where she was licking at Dominix's shaft and glanced up at Sarah. Sarah tried not to look as weirded out as she felt, holding in a gasp that tried to escape her when she saw that Mab's tongue had been slightly forked.

She tried not to look directly at Mab for her own embarrassments, simply nodding her head towards the female. "Nice to meet you," she managed to get out, though she was so quiet who knew if Mab had even heard her.

After a second Mab turned her attention back to Dominix without a word and Sarah was still struck dumb on the spot as the fairy queen pushed the male back so she could straddle him, implanting herself on him as the other male that had been attending to Dominix with her started to position himself behind her.

Sarah wasn't sure how, but she finally found the strength to turn her head away, shaking all over from head to toe even though she wasn't sure what the exact reason was. Jareth wrapped his arm around her waist and she felt almost grateful as he led her away, back through the bushes and onto the trail. "Did you actually wish to join?" Jareth asked her as they approached the fairy ring. "You seemed very unsure of your answer."

"I- I don't know," she stammered because right now that was the truth. She didn't know anything at the moment. If she were asked what two plus two equals she would have had to think about it. Her mind was still throwing flashes of that she had seen and heard at her and she felt utterly culture-shocked.

They stepped over the little ring of mushrooms and as the warmth came flooding to them Sarah noticed first thing that the guests occupying the circle had thinned down some, and that the many that remained were indeed very drunk at this point. Some of them were already passed out unconscious, left where they had fallen as people just moved around them. It was very loud though between the noise of the music and everyone there whooping it up. Jareth pulled them over to one of the wine fountains and picked out one of the goblets that was left floating in the red pool. Sarah wanted a place where she could be quiet for a second and try to process things more than anything at the moment. It didn't look like she was about to get that though.

Jareth pulled her hand, turning her back to him and Sarah simply took it when he placed a goblet of wine into her hands. "Drink this," he simply said, "You need to calm down."

She would readily agree to that. Sarah did as told for this one and practically threw the wine down her throat, hoping that it got her drunk as she cringed against the taste. No sooner was the wine gone that Jareth placed more in her hands. When she tried to drink that one down just as fast Jareth made her stop. "Sip at this one, Sarah, you are a lightweight yet and goblin wine is powerful stuff."

"To the Green Man!" someone else in the background screamed, triggering another chorus of cheers.

Jareth raised his goblet as well before drinking down his wine.

"What is that they keep toasting?" Sarah questioned, trying not to laugh even though she didn't really find it amusing. She just felt warm all over. It made her feel relaxed and even a little giddy, like nothing, could truly annoy her any longer. It was a nice feeling and she took another drink.

"The Green Man is the God responsible for all the life around us. He creates it and sustains it. He is nature." Jareth explained. Even though he was talking about one thing the look in his eyes showed that he was thinking quite another and he stepped closer to tower over her. It was obvious he meant to kiss her again. Sarah glanced down to see he was already becoming a little excited again and she tried not to laugh at the nerves of seeing him completely exposed and half aroused around so many other beings. This place was ridiculous.

Sarah rolled her eyes and brought the glass up, but once more Jareth reached out to stop her. "I told you to slow down. Don't think just because this is a night for relaxing that you no longer need to listen to me."

Sarah glanced back up at him she saw that the desire on his face hadn't changed in the slightest. He was very one-track-minded when he drank apparently.

 _No, that's just anytime_ , Sarah mused to herself.

Trying to ignore him, Sarah slowed down a little, but in a moment her goblet was empty again. This time Jareth didn't offer her the goblet in his hand, drinking out of it himself. There was a thoughtful expression creeping onto his face and it was clear he was thinking about something. "Sarah, back in Pan's field… you could have said yes to joining in on the dance if you had wanted," he told her after a moment, licking the wine from his lips. "If you change your mind tonight you still can."

Sarah frowned up at him and was surprised when she found herself aware that it felt strange when her face did that. "I- w-wouldn't you be mad… sha-aring me with others and all?" she asked, feeling surprised again when she heard herself slur. Surely, she wasn't getting that drunk already!

Jareth smirked down at her, having caught her slip as well and handed her his goblet to sip from. Sarah found herself looking over the impressive wine fountain that Jareth's mother had mentioned to her before when they were out here. The red liquid flowing over the stone looked like blood and Sarah almost giggled at the thought of fairy-vampires. _What would that even be? Something with fangs covered in glitter?_ She laughed out loud at that thought, _how utterly and ridiculously stupid_.

"I do indeed find a very satisfying pleasure in the knowledge that I am the only one who has ever touched you, ever seen you," Jareth confessed, some of the intensity returning to his eyes. "The only one who has ever _fucked_ you past reason. But I know that it will only be a matter of time before that is no longer true and some other male buries himself deep inside you."

Sarah's face was on fire. He never talked to her quite like that before. Sarah could see a faint tinge of pink in his cheeks and wondered if that was something he did when he was drunk. Some people could get out-of-their-mind drunk and you would never know they had had a sip unless you knew what they were normally like. "You think I- I'm going to sheet on you? Er… cheat on you?" Sarah corrected herself, sounding angrier than she even felt. She probably would have felt angrier, but there was a warm feeling creeping from her temples down to her chest. Jareth had been right about the wine being strong. She shook her head to clear it some but it only caused her to notice that the world was moving slower than she was now. Maybe it was the other way around, but either way, she didn't care and she was amused enough by it to shake her head once more with a little smile on her face.

Jareth smiled down at her again like she was being adorable or something. It kind of made Sarah wanna hit him. "Precious, you are so very young. Don't misunderstand me, I don't _want_ you to want anyone else but me, but you will one day. Forever is too long a time for you to not and it's part of nature. I saw the way you were looking around back at Pan's dance field and it's perfectly natural for you to have a sexual curiosity. It's healthy for you even."

Sarah stared at him from over the rim of her goblet as she took another drink. Was he testing her or something? With how possessive he was with her she doubted he would be okay with her sleeping with anyone else. She at least wasn't about to take what he said at face value, even if she was slightly intoxicated. "So, you're saying you expess- epress, epic-" she let out a frustrated growl, "Ex-pec-t me to at some point go sleep with whoever I want?"

Jareth's smile faded then. "No, I absolutely do not _expect_ you to sleep with _whomever_ you wish. In fact, that would be the stupidest thing for you to even try. We will talk about it more when I believe you will actually remember the conversation."

Sarah rolled her eyes. He was the one that had brought it up after all.

Sarah turned away from him, finding herself swaying to the music as she looked around at the other guests. She didn't find herself nearly so embarrassed by their behavior or nudity now, not caring or even processing what all she was seeing as her eyes freely and leisurely roamed about.

Like watching television or something.

When the Wizard of Oz and the Rocky Horror Picture Show were somehow on the same channel at the same time.

"How are you enjoying yourselves?" Sarah turned to see Mavid had returned to them, taking the goblet of wine Jareth offered him without hesitation.

"Perfectly fine. Toby is in bed then?" Jareth inquired.

"Of course. What have I missed here?" Mavid asked, pointing out the fact that Jareth was now uncovered with a knowing sweep of his gaze.

Sarah rolled her eyes and turned her back to them again. She didn't want to hear any explanation Jareth was drunk enough to give. Between Jareth and the obvious change made to her dress, it was obvious what had happened. Jareth replied to him though in a language she couldn't understand anyway… which kind of irritated her even more since she didn't know what was being said about her when Jareth did that. Whatever he said Mavid chuckled in response and knocked his goblet against Jareth's.

Sarah felt hot and cranky suddenly and she cast the best glare she could muster up back at them over her shoulder. Mavid took another drink from his glass and Jareth moved away from him to come closer to her, putting his arm around her shoulders to pull her close enough to place a kiss against her temple. The way he swayed slightly when he did so was another indicator to her of how drunk he was as well. He hadn't been kidding about that wine at all.

"Don't glare like that, Sarah, you get a weird line across your forehead when you do that."

 _Ass_ , Sarah almost hissed out loud.

"Did you want to dance?" Jareth asked her, joining her in her little swaying for a moment.

 _Yes_. "No. Why would I want to do that?"

"Because you liked it the last time we did, and so did I," Jareth shrugged, pulling her a little closer to the fae band that was playing music like nothing she had ever heard before. The instruments were just as foreign-looking as their players and they sounded even more so than that. Jareth positioned her to face him and Sarah didn't fight him as he brought her into his arms. The truth was, she did want to dance. Between the music and the wine and the warmth of the ring, she was in the mood to dance. She had always liked dancing, despite never being very good at it, but she did know from experience when she had been trapped in his crystal before that Jareth, in fact, _was_ a very good dancer, and was able to lead her in a way that made her look as though she was one as well. He held her between his hips and his hand on her back and she followed where both were telling her to go as he moved about with her.

She knew somewhere in the back of her head that they weren't moving very fast at all, not as fast as they should have been, but the world was spinning around her at a thrilling speed thanks to her addled mind and Sarah couldn't help but grin. It was like flying or something.

"That's so much better."

"What is?" Sarah asked, finding that she didn't really care what Jareth was talking about. She felt all good again and she was hardly even aware of the fact that she was dancing with _him_.

"Your smile," Jareth explained. "Why do you even bother frowning when you look so gorgeous smiling?"

She couldn't even remember what she had been frowning about. She didn't feel like frowning anymore though. She didn't get a chance to form an answer, not that she could have come up with a clever one just then, because Jareth stopped their dance, pulling her back from almost running into a handsome looking male with bright yellow hair and light blue skin. His eyes were a startling orange and Sarah couldn't help but stare.

"Dance?" the male asked.

Jareth didn't see if Sarah had her own response, merely passing her over to the newcomer. Sarah didn't find herself caring at all really. She honestly did just want to dance and she didn't complain as the male replaced Jareth against her, leading her around.

The male said little to her. She only found out that his hair was indeed naturally that shade of yellow and that he thought she had very shapely ankles.

Their dance was paused before long when someone else cut in to dance with her. Sarah danced till the world stopped spinning quite as bad as it had been and although she was still in a slight fog, she knew she was coming down from her wonderful high. She wasn't even sure how many partners she had danced with, none of them being for more than a couple minutes at most, before she changed partners yet again, this time finding herself dancing with Lilith; that perfect looking woman she had kind of liked from before.

Lilith smiled warmly at Sarah as she stepped up to her and took lead. "There you are, I noticed you disappeared for a while earlier."

Sarah was thankful that she didn't make any comment about her dress being totally different now. "Um, yeah, but now I'm back," Sarah muttered, branching over that topic. She glanced down and noticed finally that Lilith was still just as nude as she was before, and while that didn't bother her, Sarah realized that not only were Lilith's parts pressed against her dress… but many the other beings Sarah had danced with just a moment ago had been likewise and it hadn't really dawned on her till now.

Now that she was aware of it though she couldn't help but glance down again and felt her face go even redder when she started to compare. Lilith's breasts were bigger and perfectly shaped… it just made Sarah wish hers were a bit more like that.

"Something wrong?" Lilith asked, dragging Sarah's attention back up to her face.

Sarah could have kicked herself for acting like some stupid boy staring at another girl's breasts… then to get caught at it. Sarah couldn't help but mentally scold herself up one side and down the other. "I'm so sorry," she said quickly, noticing that Lilith didn't look offended at all. "It's just that I'm not used to this and… you just look perfect." Sarah blurted out. "Like everything about you seems too perfect. It almost makes me nervous."

Lilith laughed uproariously a that and Sarah couldn't help but offer up a drunk little smirk as well. "Oh, Sarah, you are too sweet. I forgot… I assure you I am _far_ from perfect."

Sarah let out a disbelieving snort at that. "Not as far as I can see. What, do you have a hangnail or something?"

"No," Lilith chuckled warmly as she pulled Sarah into a brief spin. "I just don't look how you think I do. I'm so sorry but I forgot that because of my species I just naturally appear as a physical ideal to some other species, humans being one of them."

Sarah didn't keep up with that. "What?"

"I can't help it, and I can't do anything to stop it, but any human that sees me doesn't actually see me, but they see what they think a perfect woman would look like. I would never look the same to two humans because it all matters on their personal ideals. Don't be nervous around me, Sarah, I assure you I'm not as perfect looking as you think I am."

Sarah couldn't keep the surprise from her face at that. "Wow, that's kinda cool."

Lilith laughed again, throaty but nice.

"What do you really look like?" Sarah asked before she could stop herself.

"Oh, I'd say average. I'm not a hideous beast or anything like that, but I would say if compared to the fae I look decent. My hair is always flat though and my eyes are a boring brown color."

Sarah looked at the thick and rich looking dark hair and the bright green eyes and could hardly believe that neither was there. "You can't turn it off?"

"Nope." Lilith looked over at something before turning back to Sarah, her face a bit more serious. "I noticed that earlier when I met you, Mavid seemed… less than enthused."

"He's only ever enthused about something if it involves someone in pain," Sarah sneered.

Lilith grinned back. "You are so much more fun than most of the queens I've met… and much more than any other of the 'royal elites'. But the reason I mentioned that was because I wanted to let you know, as I'm sure he already did, that I am not well liked amongst some of the more 'proper' types. I have a reputation and I'm not ashamed of it, after all, you'll notice that anyone who doesn't act like they have a rod permanently wedged into their backside isn't received too well in some circles. I just wanted to let you know that if you can't actually talk to me at all just say so and I will understand, no grudges."

Sarah knew she had liked this woman. She was right about what she said about the rods, that was for sure. "Don't worry about what Mavid thinks, Lilith, I never do," she joked.

Lilith grinned back in return, pausing in their dance as she reached out and pulled a piece of fuzz from Sarah's hair. "You can call me Lilly."

Sarah was a little bummed when someone tapped her shoulder to take her place, but when she turned and saw Jareth and Mavid her face completely fell.

Both looked rather annoyed as Jareth slid past Sarah into her place. "If you don't mind, Sarah, I would like to have the next dance with Lilith," Jareth drawled, not bothering to wait for an answer from either female. Lilith caused Sarah to smile a little despite herself when she gave Sarah an exaggerated eye roll before sparing her a wink as Jareth spun her away, a look of irritation still on his face and Sarah watched for a moment as Jareth began speaking to Lilith with a cross look on his face, even though Sarah couldn't hear anything he was saying she couldn't help but feel admirable of the bored look on Lilith's face as she replied, completely unaffected by anything Jareth was saying to her.

Sarah's attention to them was interrupted when Mavid took her hand and wrapped his arm around her waist to keep her dancing. She glared up at him and he scowled down at her as well. They must have looked quite the sight as they both moved stiffly to the music.

Sarah was about to throw his hands off her and stomp off when he spoke. "What was she saying to you?" he demanded.

Sarah narrowed her eyes and the liquor made her feel braver than she would have normally been as she scoffed at him. "Who do you think you are? Jareth? It's none of your business and even if it was it wasn't that important anyway."

She made to go through with her earlier plan, but Mavid easily recaptured her hand and moved her into a spin. He wasn't as mindful of her inebriated state as Jareth had been though and did so at an even faster speed than was expected and Sarah felt her head tip slightly as she tried to keep her balance. The smirk on his face indicated he had done that on purpose.

"I don't want to dance with _you_ , let me go!" Sarah hissed.

"Babysitting you isn't my favorite past time either," Mavid growled back, "Jareth ordered me to dance with you till he was done so that is what we will do till he gets back."

"What is he even doing?"

"Just having a word with Lilith."

"About what?"

"That's his business."

Sarah tried to push against him again, but he simply jerked her back once more, dragging her around more than dancing with her at this point. "Don't run off, princess. I was just about to compliment you on your dress," Mavid sneered at her, bringing attention to the fact that her dress was nothing like how it had started out earlier tonight and they both knew why. He seemed to find it very amusing that she was forced into doing things she didn't want to all the time. He was ten times worse than Clora could ever be about things like that. Sarah thought about all the times she had been hurt and he had been there to smirk about it, to taunt her and scare her. Sarah felt her anger pound through her so hard that she could hear it running in her veins and for a moment she saw only red before she managed to jerk her hand out of Mavid's… bringing it down hard against his cheek!

"Asshole!" she hissed with venom in her voice like she had never heard before.

It hadn't been enough to make him go staggering back or anything, but his head had snapped to the side for a moment and he had stopped pulling her around, shock and a red hand mark both on his face as he stared down at her.

"You are such an asshole!" she hissed again, ignoring the tears that were pushing at the backs of her eyes from the surge of emotion that she was too buzzed to control at the moment.

Mavid recovered from his surprise and scowled down at her once more. "I should march over to Jareth right now and tell him what you just did to me, you ungrateful little-"

"Go ahead," Sarah snapped, "I can tell him myself if you don't! I can also tell him about how you led me down a hall and threatened me, or maybe about how you took me back to my room after that and touched me without permission!" In all honesty, she was gambling on whether these things would even matter at all or not in this backward realm, but the look of reproach on Mavid's face was evidence that they did. He obviously hadn't expected any of this from her and it was just as obvious that he wasn't sure what to do now.

This time it was Sarah's turn to smile smugly. When she pulled away from Mavid he didn't try to stop her finally, just stood there as she marched away from him and back over to the wine fountain she had stood by with Jareth earlier.

She ignored everyone around her as she took a goblet out, scooping wine into it and taking another drink to keep up her buzz. If she could just stay in a daze for the night she just might make it.

Sarah let out a surprised yelp when something fell against her back, turning around to see an elf of some sort had tripped into her. He regained his footing with a mix of apologies and curses as a group of his friends stood back and laughed at him.

"Are you alright?" Sarah asked, reaching out to help but he only took her hand long enough to push something small into it and with another cursing apology turned and rejoined his friends. Sarah frowned down at the little flower in her palm, inspecting it's tiny yellow and orange petals. What was this for?

She brought it up to her nose and breathed in deep, only to sneeze no less than five times in a row as a tangy aroma hit her nostrils, clutching the flower tight in her hand as she straightened up.

Only, when she straightened up the world spun on her way worse than it had when she had been particularly drunk earlier and she had only the faintest realization that her legs had stopped supporting her and she had fallen to the ground, laughter gushing from her mouth at how silly she felt as she laid on the grass. She wanted to get up, but at the same time, she didn't because the grass felt amazing! Like she had never felt grass before in her life.

This couldn't be real grass!

She turned over with great effort onto her stomach, she had to have a closer look… to touch it more.

X

"How long did you say she was away from you again?" Jareth mused, watching as Sarah stroked the stone base of the fountain he had propped her up against.

"About ten seconds," Mavid sighed.

Jareth couldn't help but chuckle. At least if she insisted on getting into situations like these tonight was the night and here was certainly the place for it. He and Mavid had found Sarah rolling about on the grass, claiming she could hear it laughing with her as she clutched a crushed Bellman's flower in her hand. It was easy to piece together that she had sniffed it, not knowing that the flower's smell was a highly rare and effective drug. Who knew where she had gotten it, but it wasn't surprising that something like that would turn up at a gathering like this.

It wouldn't hurt her or anything, but she was going to be like this for a while. Jareth chuckled again as she tried to fall back down onto the grass again, sitting down next to her and wrapping his arm around her to keep her propped up. She did have a sort of innocent vulnerability to her when she was like this, pouting because he wouldn't let her lay out on the grass as if she were sunbathing.

If she could see herself now she would probably just get embarrassed or act all indignant about it.

Jareth placed a kiss against her temple as she turned her attention to his hand on her lap, bringing it up in front of her and spreading out his fingers to examine them.

"Do you want to try to move her?"

Jareth shook his head and watched as she placed her hand against his, comparing them.

"Will you be needing me?" Mavid piped, up, speaking to Jareth even though his eyes were focused elsewhere.

Jareth followed his line of sight to see a fair distance from them stood a curvaceous female with pale pink skin and a horn growing from the very center of her head in a fashion strikingly like a unicorn's. The female was staring at Mavid as well with a come-get-me grin.

It was obvious that Sarah wasn't about to be meeting anyone else tonight. Even if she had been in a righter state of mind almost none of the guests were still conscious at this point. And Jareth wasn't going to leave her side again at all.

"You may go enjoy your night," Jareth confirmed, jumping when Sarah's attention quickly turned from his hand and she suddenly reached down and grabbed him, looking over his shaft now in the same way she had his hand… pure and innocent curiosity.

Mavid laughed out loud at that and with a shake of his head took another goblet of wine from the fountain, taking it with him over to the waiting girl with the horn.

Jareth turned his attention back to Sarah, who was now abandoning his member to trace circles over his thigh with her nail. "Sarah, can you listen to me?" Jareth asked her, petting her back as she cuddled into his lap like some overgrown kitten.

"I don't like him," she muttered. "He's an asshole."

She was probably talking about Mavid, though there was a chance she wasn't aware Jareth was holding her and was talking about him.

"I miss Toby. Can't we go home?" she muttered, turning her head to rest against his thigh so she could be more comfortable.

"Did you have a good time tonight?"

"I suppose so."

Sarah let out a big yawn and Jareth watched as her eyes glazed over, her lids trying to shut.

He moved his thigh and although it did cause her to hesitate in closing her eyes, that was all it managed and they closed anyway.

X

On a personal note: Be sure to check out The Book of Lo by R. N. FLOYD

Available now on Amazon in both print and kindle ebook.

(My own original work exploring the fantasy world I built of Fayrie)

X

 **IMPORTANT if you want to keep reading this story:** I have decided to split this story into a second part. The next chapter will appear as a New Story. If you want to be updated for when that chapter is ready, just click the icon below offered by and sign up for Author Alerts, which will tell you when I post the next chapter and therefore kick off the second half of this story! Those who have already subscribed to me wont have to do anything but sit back and wait for the posting of Just As I Can Be So Cruel II.

I know this story is getting horrifically long, and its only like half done, but the aspect of a straight up 60 chapter story intimidates even me, much less any would-be-readers from trying this out. This debut seemed like a very good point to split the story on because it is our transition from one level to the next. And now the second part can get into the more raw and intense stuff that we couldn't just dive into before without making this story seem forced and pushed along… I'm very excited :D

This part of the story is complete, but will continue in part 2!


	34. Chapter 34

Beta for this chapter is The Art of Suicide

X

Sarah sat across the little table in the blue lounging room from Ishapell and Torik, Clora seated next to her, playing a card game they had taught her that was apparently very popular amongst the fae. It was extremely fast paced and you had to pay very close attention to what you were doing otherwise you would completely screw yourself up… which was probably why she was losing. Cards were getting thrown at her just as fast as Ishapell could manage and she couldn't figure out what to discard and what to try to collect. She was pretty sure there was no hope for her now at this point.

"Fours!" Clora screamed and slammed down her four fours in the middle of the table, signaling herself the winner.

The rest of them let out groans and Sarah dropped her useless cards on the surface. "I just needed one more King," Ishapell sighed.

"So that's where my six was," Torik muttered, glancing at Sarah's discarded hand.

Clora reached out and gathered up the cards, pulling them into a deck so they could play again.

Sarah hadn't really wanted to play, but there was nothing else to do today. Jareth had taken Toby with him into his office for the day and she still wasn't allowed outside the castle. She hadn't been allowed out for what felt like close to a month, not since they returned from the fairy ring.

She couldn't remember a lot of that night, mostly just flashes here or there. She could remember the night, for the most part, arriving there, the people she met, that there was a lot of nudity and drink… Jareth dragging her through the woods and back. But the details and everything after that were extremely fuzzy. She could remember the flower she had been handed, and waking up the next morning to the sun on her face and body as she found herself and Jareth curled up together asleep on the grass.

She had never slept outside like that before, but then… she had done a lot of first timers that night.

She certainly did remember that she had struck Mavid though… but not why she had. She was willing to bet she had a very good reason. The only thing was, he remembered too and things between them had been more than tense for a time. Every time she had been near him for a while after that he would get this look in his eye like he was sizing her up or something weird.

Jareth was little better than that since the fairy ring, except with him it was more directed toward the bedroom. Whenever they were together he would continuously try to push the envelope just a little further, making her try this or that… some things pleasant and some things not. She had refused, and so far, he had respected that, when he had asked for permission to take her "last virginity" as he called it. She didn't want him there and she knew it would hurt. She was scared, and even though Jareth had not forced her into anal yet, there was like a constant push heading in that direction when they were together. He would touch her back there more, or put her on her hands and knees and play with everything he was presented with. Sarah's face caught on fire just thinking about it.

Some of the things they did though… she did like… a lot. Jareth had tied her up once. It had frightened her at first to be restrained and defenseless. But Jareth had given her a safe word to use in case he took it further than she wanted and it had been amazing. Plus, she had learned that one of the mirrored panels directly over the bed could be pushed up and slid to the side to reveal an adjustable chain hanging down with crushed-leather cuffs attached to it.

"Are you going to pass the cards along or are you done playing?" Clora suddenly snapped at her, bringing the game in progress to a halt.

Sarah snapped out of her own memories with a fierce blush, looking down to see she had fallen way behind and hadn't even looked at her cards. "Sorry," she sighed, tossing her cards down on the table since this round was already ruined thanks to her.

She looked out the window to see that it was already starting to get dark. In a couple hours, they would have supper, she would spend some time with Toby, then she and Jareth would continue with what had become their nightly routine of bath, sex, and sleep. Her days were becoming all too insipid and boring all over again.

A weird sound came from near the outside of the window and her attention was pulled back there. "What the-"

All four of them jumped and Torik even dropped the cards when suddenly a bony grey hand grabbed onto the stone edge of the window and a small little-winged creature climbed onto the sill. It was strange looking, like a starved child with long ears that curled in a spiral at the ends and a long devil-like tail trailing behind it. Its wings were bat-like and its teeth and nails were sharp as it stared in the window at them with coal-black eyes. Sarah had never seen such a frightening creature in all her life and she screamed and jumped up when it pushed open the window panel and climbed into the room with the company of a cold wind.

Torik rushed for the door but Ishapell pulled him back. "It's just an imp!" she assured him, as though that meant anything.

The hellish-looking imp raised its ugly little head up to peer around the room before shaking it in disgust. "Silly screaming humans, what trouble I did go to! Risk my life just so a letter I might bring you." It grumbled in a gruff and gnarled voice as it dug into a little canvas bag hanging over its shoulder.

"Who are you?" Sarah gasped, still frightened by its appearance. There was just something more wicked looking about it than any of the goblins.

"A messenger for my mistress. Asked me to bring it to the Goblin Queen. This here be the Castle at the Center of the Goblin City. Where be the queen?" It pulled out a little white envelope with a blue seal and waved it in front of him to show he wasn't lying.

Ishapell and Clora glanced at Sarah before Ishapell stepped forward. "I can take that letter, I assume the mistress you speak of is Lilith?"

The imp quickly pulled it back from Ishapell's hand. "She is, and she says to give it to the queen and nobody else but the queen. I will do as told. I looked in no less than two hundred windows before seeing you, women. Now, where be the queen?"

Sarah pushed aside her hesitations about the imp's appearance and forced herself to step up next to Ishapell. Surely if Ishapell wasn't afraid of the imp she didn't have reason to be either. "I'm the Goblin Queen. You know Lilith?"

"I serve mistress," the imp muttered gruffly, shoving the envelope into Sarah's hands. Sarah gripped it as though she didn't even know what to do with it. The imp just kept staring up at her, waiting for something.

Sarah stared back.

"Tip," the imp said, holding his bony hand out.

Sarah looked over at Ishapell and Clora. She didn't have any money. Judging by the looks they were giving her they didn't either. "I- I don't have any money," Sarah whispered, feeling lame and uncomfortable.

"Poor Queen… think not! Tip! Something… anything… show your thanks!" the imp snapped up at her, his hand still out expectantly.

Sarah looked around the room, making up her mind and taking the deck of cards out of Torik's hand. "Here, it's all I can give," she told the imp, handing him the deck.

The imp turned the cards over in his hands, and without a word or grumble tucked them into his sack before turning on his heel and going back to the window. He jumped out and flew off quickly, and Clora rushed over to the window and closed it up against the cold again.

Sarah turned the envelope over in her hands. Looking at the blue seal that had an ornate-looking bull's head imprinted on it.

"Why would Lilith be writing to you?" Clora asked, coming back over to also stare down at the letter.

Sarah shrugged, not having heard from the female since the debut. "I met her at the debut and we kind of hit it off."

"Is that so?"

"You should probably take that to Jareth," Ishapell piped up. "He's not going to be pleased that she's sending her imps out here."

"It's a letter to _me_ ," Sarah reasoned. She wanted to read it, but the others were all standing around her, waiting for her to do just that. "Should I read it out loud or act it out for you?" she asked pointedly, moving across the room from them to stand over by the door.

They didn't follow her, but none of them stopped watching her to allow her privacy either.

Figuring this was the best she was going to get for the moment since if she left the room Clora and Ishapell would automatically follow, Sarah tore the letter open and settled her back against the wall as she read it.

 _Dearest Sarah,_

 _I hope this letter finds you bored and with a flexible schedule. I'm hoping that is the case only so that way, even if you don't wish to, you will accept my invitation to visit me at my home. I would think by this time you are wanting a little bit more companionship than what you have available to you at the Labyrinth. Since you did not reply to my earlier letters I am sending this one with one of my most trusted subjects so that it may be sure to reach you. I hope to hear a response back from you with this one. Let me know if you are interested in some 'girl-time' and we can figure something out._

 _With love, Lily_

Other letters?! Sarah stuffed the letter she _had_ gotten into the envelope again and turned to the others, who were all still watching her expectantly. "I'm going to go see, Jareth. I don't need any company."

No one argued with her which was good because she wouldn't have listened anyway. Sarah hurried out of the room and through the halls and sets of stairs in the direction of Jareth's office, where she knew he spent most of his work days though she had never been in there before.

She finally reached the door that she was sure was his study and stood outside it for a moment, her anger simmering inside her as she tried to push it down somewhat since she knew Toby was in the room as well. She was still angry, but once she was sure she could speak without screaming she lifted her hand and knocked on the heavy dark wood of the door.

She couldn't hear anything on the inside, and she wondered if maybe she had been wrong or they had possibly even stepped out when the door was pulled open and Mavid stood in the space, rolling his eye when he saw it was her. "It's your wife," he said, obviously to Jareth even though his eyes didn't leave hers.

"Then stand aside," she could hear Jareth say from somewhere inside the room.

Mavid did as told and Sarah sent him a scathing look as she moved past him into the room. It was a lot smaller than she had thought it would be, with books and files piled on shelves lining the walls that looked like they hadn't been touched for decades and a very large and old-looking desk in the center, also piled with different scrolls, parchments, books, and pieces of paper. Jareth sat on the far side from her, closer to the window, and he held Toby in his lap with one arm, his other holding a quill poised over a half-written sheet of paper. Toby was perching on the edge of Jareth's knee, running a toy horse across Jareth's desk repeatedly. "Sarah, what is it?" Jareth prompted, motioning for her to take the seat across the desk from him.

Sarah did so, noticing that the wood of the chair was still warm from where Mavid had been sitting in it. "Have I been receiving any letters?" she asked, trying hard to keep the accusations out of her tone for now.

Jareth's eyes flicked to the envelope in her hand. "I would chance to guess so considering you are holding one. Where did you get that?"

"That's not what I meant and you know it," she growled, clutching her letter just a little tighter as Mavid moved to stand behind her. "I mean have you gotten any letters that were addressed to me?"

Jareth's eyes glanced up at Mavid behind her and she could feel them exchange a look. "There have been a couple invites that have come in for you. Mavid…" Jareth turned his gaze from her again and Sarah looked over her shoulder as Mavid moved over to one of the shelves and pulled out a little booklet that was untouched by dust, bringing it over and setting it in front of her on the desk.

Sarah stared down at it in confusion before reaching out and opening it up.

 _Loki's and Cleo's … to be contacted_

 _Kaleen's showing… 52w_

 _Dr. Dee's Visit… 457_

 _Meet with Olay and Craw… contact made, 420_

 _Cycle start… 73p_

It went on for almost the entire page like that and she didn't understand any of it. "What is this?" she finally brought herself to ask after staring at it for a moment.

"You're schedule," Mavid answered, pointing it out to her. Like she couldn't see it.

She had a schedule?! "I wasn't told about this," she stated indignantly, glaring down at the page.

"You haven't needed to attend anything yet," Jareth informed her, shifting Toby up higher on his leg. "You would have been informed later tonight about the visit we will be receiving from the pixie king and queen tomorrow evening, and the others as they came up."

 _How kind of you to make every decision for me like this_ , Sarah thought with bitter anger. "This is everything I've been invited to?" Sarah asked, looking over the list again and seeing nothing about Lilith written on it.

"Everything that I am willing to let you attend, yes." Jareth leaned back in his chair. "Perhaps you would like to tell me what your little letter says?" his expression telling her he already had a guess or two.

Sarah placed it on the desk and pushed it in front of him. "It's from Lilith, saying that she wants me to visit her… and that she has sent me letters before."

Jareth stared down at it, looking completely bored.

The more unfazed he acted, the madder Sarah felt and as it was she was growing very hot-faced. "I don't suppose you know anything about them," she hissed.

"Where did you get this?" Jareth asked casually, ignoring her question and pulling the letter out of the envelope.

"Some imp came into the room we were lounging in and handed it to me."

Jareth's interest sharpened a bit at that and he sat up straighter in his chair, exchanging another look with Mavid. "We'll need to place imp repellants around the castle and the Labyrinth."

"I'll try to have that done by supper."

Jareth conjured up a crystal, Sarah momentarily forgotten and gazed into it at something as Toby reached up to try to touch it. "The imp has made it out of the Labyrinth it seems," Jareth murmured, handing the crystal over to Toby. Toby reached out to take it, only to squeal and laugh when it popped against his fingers like a bubble.

"Bubble pop!" Toby shouted.

Jareth placed another kiss against Toby's head. He still couldn't say crystal, Sarah had told him they were bubbles once and so that was what Toby referred to them as now. Jareth far from seemed to mind it. He could make his crystals vanish with ease but if Toby was around he would always have them pop like bubbles, which never failed to delight the toddler.

At length, Jareth let out a sigh and pinched the bridge of his nose between his thumb and forefinger. "Mavid, take Toby for a walk."

Mavid moved away from Sarah and around the desk as Jareth slid Toby off his leg and onto the ground so he could stand on his own. "Go with Mavid son," Jareth coaxed him softly.

"Come on, little Prince," Mavid invited, holding his hand out to Toby. Sarah watched as he took it without hesitation and practically pulled Mavid along as he ran around the desk, pausing to hand his little toy horse to Sarah, who took it with a small smile and leaned over so she could kiss his cheek before Mavid continued out the door with him.

"Night night!" Toby shouted, even though he just meant bye-bye.

Once they were out Sarah turned back to Jareth, the anger that had melted away during her brief interaction with Toby returning to her. "Jareth, I want to go and see Lilith," she told him firmly as she gripped the horse in her hand.

"No," he countered, just as firmly, as he picked up the letter and scanned over its contents.

"For what reason?!" Sarah came close to shouting now, her anger getting away from her and she had little interest in fighting it now.

Jareth's mismatched eyes snapped to her and a deep frown formed across his face. "It's reason enough that I don't wish for you to go. Do not raise your voice at me," he warned her.

"What other letters have you been keeping from me? I want to see them. Lilith said that she sent me other letters and got no reply. You don't have any right to read my letters!"

Jareth raised a brow at her like she had just said something stupid. He took the letter and envelope that Sarah _had_ received and got up from his chair, moving over to one of the walls lined with shelves and stooped down to where there was a little door. Sarah watched in confusion for a moment, thinking to herself that the door was far too small for Jareth to ever fit through if he planned to leave, but he opened it up to reveal it was, in fact, a little fireplace, already lit and Sarah jumped up just before he threw her letter into the flames.

"Hey!" she shouted now, rushing over as though she could do anything about it as her letter quickly curled up into char. Jareth got up and towered over her now. "Sarah, I know your little-victimized mind is probably going a mile a minute, but believe me when I tell you that if you knew Lilith you would have done the same thing yourself just now."

Sarah far from believed him. "You told me to make friends there! I did, but that doesn't matter because it wasn't the friend you wanted for me!" Sarah shouted now, not caring if it made him cross because right now she was livid with him. "You're such a jerk to me!"

She flinched when Jareth reached up to pinch his nose again, thinking that he was aiming to hit her at first. He noticed her flinch though and she blushed as he narrowed his eyes at her. "Not that you wouldn't deserve it right now," he growled at her as he stepped around her and went back over to his desk, creating some distance between them.

"You said if I knew Lilith I wouldn't want to, from what I know she is the only person in this world so far that has really treated me like I wasn't something lower than themselves. I thought she was wonderful at the party."

"Of course, she was being nice to you, Sarah," Jareth scoffed, "She was courting you."

Sarah wasn't sure what he meant by that, so she just continued to glare at him, her arms crossed over her chest.

"Sit down, Sarah," Jareth ordered. "I can see I need to explain it all to you."

Her cheeks heated at that comment. As if she were supposed to know what he was talking about. It wasn't fair that she got treated like a simpleton when she had no way of already knowing anything about what he was talking about.

At her resistance, Jareth slammed his fist down hard on the desktop, causing Sarah to jump. "I said sit!" he bellowed, his own anger finally rising.

As much as she hated himself for it, her fear led her back down into the chair in front of his desk. She had thought he would retake his own as well, but he didn't. Instead, he came around the desk to stand in front of her, leaning back against the solid wood as he crossed his arms in front of himself. "Sarah, did you not even notice that she was flirting with you?"

That shocked her, to say the least. After the initial shock wore off, she just felt angry. Lilith wasn't flirting with her, was Jareth so intent on her not being around Lilith that he would try to make her think that she just wanted in her pants or something? "That's just stupid," Sarah huffed. "She wasn't flirting with me, she was being nice."

"Can you even remember what she was saying to you," Jareth sneered down at her. "I stood there and watched her dance with you; batting her eyes at you and touching you. Is it because she is another woman that you didn't even notice it?"

Of all the absurd things he could make up to keep her from Lilith…

Sarah pegged him with an unwavering glare before she stood up from her chair and stomped toward the door, feeling like if she stayed in his presence another second she would say or do something she thoroughly would regret.

Just as she touched the knob, however, Jareth's hand reached out and slammed against the door, keeping her from opening it. "Sit back down," he hissed at her, his patience run thin.

"So you can tell me Lilith is trying to seduce me again?" Sarah drawled, every word dripping with resentment.

Jareth gripped her shoulder firmly and Sarah found herself pushed back down into her seat despite wanting to be there or not. "If you suspect me of lying then at least have courage enough to say it out loud. Go ahead Sarah, tell me I'm lying to you," Jareth dared her, caging her into her chair as he bent over to look her in the eye.

With him so close, glaring at her and coiled like he was a cobra waiting to strike… as much as she wished she had the nerve, Sarah couldn't gather up the strength to say anything.

After a seemingly endless silence, Jareth finally spoke, his voice considerably softer as he stooped down in front of her so he was now looking up at her. "Sarah, I swear I am not lying to you, nor even speculating on this. I am telling you this because I know for a fact that is what she is doing. It's in her kind's nature. She is not fae."

Hesitantly, Sarah shifted her eyes to look at him. "What do you mean?" she asked, not willing to believe him just yet, but curious as to what he was saying all the same.

Jareth let out a long sigh and his head dropped down so his forehead rested on her knee for a moment before he looked up at her again. "Sarah, I have never lied to you before, and I wouldn't do so. I must beg that you believe me that when I tell you to do things, or not to do things, or chastise you… I never do so with the hopes of seeing you miserable or upset. There is always a reason for it that will in some way benefit you, whether I tell you what that reason is or not. I _want_ to see you happy, Precious. Nothing would make _me_ happier after all." He took her limp hands from her lap and brought them up to his lips, nuzzling the backs of her knuckles on first one then the other. "This world is both beautiful and terrifying, and much like your Aboveground, there are creatures here that are very good and pure… as well as those that are evil and like nothing better than to prey upon those that are pure. There is so much I want to do for you Sarah, to give to you."

He kissed her knuckles a final time before standing up and leaning back against the desk, dropping her hands back into her lap. "One of the things I wish to give to you is safety and protection from such creatures. You are still so young and naïve, there will be many in this world that will try to take advantage of you. I don't prohibit you from seeing Lilith because I don't want you to have any friends, I do so because she is trying to do to you what she has done to four other Royals and countless other victims. She is a succubus."

Sarah stared up at him blankly, but he had her complete attention now. "A-a what?"

"A succubus. Did she seem beautiful to you? Like the loveliest female you've ever seen?"

"Y-yeah…" Sarah nodded slowly. "What is a succubus though?"

"A creature that lives and thrives on sex. Lilith is rumored to be one of the first of her kind, but there are more like her. They can feed off anyone through sex, draining life-forces, but they all have their preferences. Lilith is known to feed only off those who under normal circumstances, wouldn't be interested in anything sexual with her."

Sarah couldn't believe what she was hearing, but it was a lot harder to think that he was making this all up now as she sat glued to her seat. Her face and eyes burning.

"She was hunting you, Sarah. Mavid saw this right away and when he couldn't keep you away from her I stepped in and warned her off. I've been burning her letters to you, but she still wants you. It's what she does, what she did with the others I know of, find someone who doesn't want her, seduces them to force down their guard, and will then drug them with the saliva from one of her kisses and proceed to feed on them… which is what she would do to you if you went to visit her."

A terrible chill shot through Sarah's spine and she could only sit there and gape, staring at Jareth's king's pendant but not really seeing it.

"Do you still think I'm making this up?" Jareth asked her.

Sarah could only shake her head no. Was there no one in this world she could trust? She didn't want to believe, but how could she not? It fell into place just so perfectly with how everything else here in the Underground was playing out for her thus-far. Why wouldn't she be seduced and 'fed' upon by some sex-hungry beauty queen?

It was silly to cry over it, pointless and all… but the tears still pushed at her eyes and she couldn't help but feel used and hopeless as though she would never know anyone who was good again, much less ever have a friend. The only real friends she ever had had been banished after she had failed them and she could trust no one else. God, she felt stupid.

Sarah flinched back when Jareth reached out to her, but when he wiped away her tears and wrapped his arms around her to hold and comfort her, she didn't flinch again. She wasn't crying awfully hard, and she suspected that was because at this point she was just getting used to bitter disappointment and betrayal.

"Shhh, Sarah. Don't cry, it will be alright love. don't cry," Jareth soothed her, being so sweet and tender as he rocked her and smoothed down her hair.

Sarah allowed him to comfort her for a little while since she knew she would get it from nowhere else, holding onto him and sniveling into his shoulder till the tears dried and she just felt tired. Still, he continued to pet her.

"A part of me wishes that you would just be mean to me all the time," Sarah found herself saying out loud before she could catch herself.

Jareth pulled back from her then with a light frown on his face. "Be very careful what you wish for around here Sarah. Why would you want a thing like that?"

"Because then it would be easier for me to hate you all the time," she said simply.

She thought it might make him mad, but instead, Jareth just gave her a humorless little smirk and kissed the side of her cheek tenderly. "One day you will stop hating me altogether," he whispered to her.

She highly doubted that even if he was nice to her at times. She said nothing to him though as she wiped the very last of the tears from her eyes.

Jareth sorted through one or two things on the desk, collecting a pen and piece of paper and placing both in front of Sarah. Sarah stared at the pen for a lingering amount of time… it was one of those Pilot gel pens from the Aboveground!

She looked up to Jareth in puzzlement.

"I find the pens are far more practical than feathers and ink and so when I can I purchase them from the black magic market," he shrugged. "I thought also that it might be easier for you to use in writing your response to Lilith."

"M-my response?" Sarah asked lamely as she looked at the parchment placed before her, Jareth's crest that matched her ring and his medallion stamped at the top center.

"A short response telling her you wish to end communication with her should be fine. I don't want more imps trying to claw their way into my labyrinth."

"Oh," was all she could say. She supposed she did need to at least send some sort of response. After what Jareth had just told her she, of course, didn't want to go see Lilith any longer. It still sucked to cut what she had previously thought to be a friend out of her life.

Sarah took a deep breath and wrote out a brief letter, Jareth standing over her and looking on as she told Lilith that she was sorry, but she didn't want her to keep trying to make contact anymore. That she had no interest in visiting or being visited. Sarah signed it and handed it back to Jareth before she could think not to.

As Jareth folded her letter up and walked back around the desk, Sarah tried to push Lilith and her hurt completely from her mind. "Will you continue to keep my letters from me?" Sarah made herself ask. Regardless of Lilith, she still didn't like that he was doing that.

"Do you need to see them?" Jareth drawled, pulling the folded letter into a thick envelope but not sealing it as he pulled out a second piece of parchment and reached across the desk to take back the pen.

"They're addressed to me," she snapped. "I should at least get to see them!"

"Very well." Jareth simply shrugged.

Sarah blanched a bit at how easy that had seemed. She had expected more of a fight on the matter. "Just like that?"

"Just like that," Jareth nodded, turning his attention from her to the paper in front of him as he began to write in that scrolling script that looked so much more elegant and grown up than her own block letters.

"And I can choose what invitations to accept from now on?" she stipulated.

"Sometimes perhaps. Your schedule is made up by Mavid and overseen by me and will continue to be as such. Ninety-five percent of the invitations we receive are addressed to me anyway. I will allow you to view some of the ones addressed to you and if any appeal to you then we can see about accepting. I'll make sure to let Mavid know to give you your mail after he is done with it."

Anger suddenly lit up her entire body. that was the worst arrangement ever. "Mavid reads all my mail?!"

"It will continue to be his job till you are more capable of sensible decision making. Perhaps this will help you learn to do so. If you wish to attend something or reply to something you shouldn't then I'll have the opportunity to teach you why you shouldn't and if you disregard something important than I can teach you not to do that as well."

This all sounded terrible and any hope she had had before when he had agreed to let her see her mail had totally evaporated at this point.

"When I said I want to see my mail from now on, I meant _only_ **I** should see my mail from now on," she hissed.

"No," came the firm reply.

"That's a felony to mess with other people's mail!" she insisted, wishing as soon as the words left her mouth that she had said anything else.

Jareth laughed out loud at that and she felt her cheeks heat up. "Not in the Underground, Sarah, not when it is I or someone with my permission reading it. You are my wife, after all, anything of yours is always available to me." His eyes took a lusty travel over her body when he said that and she could only think to sit in her chair and continue to fume.

Jareth looked her over leisurely once more before turning back to his writing, finishing the sentence he was working on before setting the pen down on top of it. "I'm glad you're here actually," he said, giving her his full and serious attention once more. "While you're here I can tell you about the visit we will be getting tomorrow afternoon from the Pixies."

Were they done with the issue of her mail then?! Jareth could be so impossible. She couldn't remember much from the night she had met them, but Sarah did remember the thin and shallow little creatures and how Jareth had stressed the importance of being nice to them since he was hoping to breed Mavid with their attendant. Sarah crinkled her nose in disapproval. "Why are they coming here?"

Jareth narrowed his eyes at her, but she held her hand up to clarify what she meant. "I know, I know, you plan to breed Mavid and all that so we need to meet with them about it, but I mean why are they coming _here_?"

"Ah, well that's part of this conversation actually. I have arranged for us to meet them in a small property I own just on the outside of the Labyrinth wall. I don't use it much, and would normally take a small pleasure in forcing more pompous guests to endure the disarray and mess that comes with the goblins that find their ways into this castle…" he admitted, a small smirk playing about his lips.

"But… you're trying to be nice to them because they have something you want?" Sarah concluded.

Jareth nodded his head slowly. "Yes. So far, my correspondence with them has been through letters and the occasional messenger, but all the details have been worked out and agreed upon. There's… just the final step."

The hair on Sarah's arms prickled at that. "The final step… that wouldn't happen to be the actual coupling, would it?"

Jareth nodded his head solemnly, his focus intent on her as he searched out her reactions. Like he was trying to read her mind through her face. Sarah defensively tried not to react too much, but there was no way he couldn't guess that her main emotions were on this. "So, you'll be going to this tomorrow night?"

"I believe I said 'we'."

Her head shot up at that. "Why 'we'? You know I'm not in favor of this practice and the last thing I want to do with my time is be there as Mavid gets it on with someone!"

Jareth rose from his chair then and Sarah felt the hair on her neck rise too. "You will be there because Mavid is doing this for our son's benefit and you and I will support him. This isn't debatable," he informed her coldly, the expression on his face showing that he cared nothing for any arguments on her side.

She was still willing to argue on this point though… _very_ willing to argue. "Can't you just tell them I'm sick or something?!" she could hear the whine in her own voice but couldn't help it and didn't care about it enough to stop. She was angry and she saw no reason why she had to be there since she didn't support this. "They don't really like me anyway! I'm sure Mavid would get over his disappointments."

"Sarah, I will tell you only once to behave yourself and do as told, if you continue with this caterwauling I will send you to bed right now without supper!"

"I'm not a fucking child!" she screeched in her utter outrage.

She jumped and leaned back as far as she could in her chair when Jareth came around the desk at her with daggers in his eyes and she yelped when he struck her across the mouth. It hadn't been very hard, surprising her more than hurting her, but she still hated him for it none the less and flinched again when he grabbed her arm and pulled it away from her face so she couldn't shield herself from anything else. "Don't you dare speak like that to me again," he hissed at her, "You raised your voice and just to spew disgusting language at me. Do it again and you'll receive a lot more than a light tap from me, Precious." He threw her arm back at her and she cradled it to her, rubbing at the sore spots his fingers had left on her. "How do you expect me to think of you as anything other than a child when you still have such annoying and childish outbursts like you do?"

He was so horrible to her, it was hard for her to believe that he had just held and comforted her not five minutes ago. And now this?! "Leave me alone," she hissed at him, hating the very sight of him now.

He grabbed her shoulders and she yelped again as he dragged her onto her feet, shoving her at the door in front of him. "You're going to get your wish this time." he sneered, "You are to stay in your room and out of my sight for the rest of the night, thinking of a proper and redeeming apology for me. I also expect you to think about how you will conduct yourself in a lady-like manner tomorrow night when our guests are here."

She tried to push his hand off her arm where it was biting into her without mercy, half afraid he would break her arm if he kept this up. He gave her a small shake and she cried out from the added pain. "Tell me if you understand or not."

"Yes!" she shouted, her arm stinging in pain. Her arm was forgotten to her though when Jareth pushed her hard against the wall outside his study, the air escaping her when the back of her head hit the stone wall.

"What did I just tell you about raising your voice at me?"

There was no winning with him now. He was searching for reasons it seemed. "I- you were hurting me," she defended, even though she knew it would do her no good.

"I suggest you leave my sight right now before I am tempted to do worse," Jareth warned her. "Do I need to walk you there, or do you think you can manage it on your own to not wonder about this time?"

The last time she had snuck out to the garden and he had used his crop on her for the first time when he had found out. She didn't want a repeat of that at all. "I can walk myself," she muttered, feeling defeated and pitiful as he glared down at her, his grip still tight on her arm.

"Make sure you do as you're told. I'll come to you after supper for my apology, then we can continue our discussion like civilized adults."

"Fine," she sniffed, wanted to just get away from him now.

He finally dropped her arm and she fought hard not to cry out in relief at the sudden lack of pressure there. She kept her stance as firm as she could till Jareth slammed the door closed. As soon as she was left alone outside his study and grabbed her arm and bent down over it to cradle out the pain there. "Bastard," she hissed very softly to herself.

Once she was sure her arm was okay she reached up to rub the pain that still lingered at the back of her head, fighting down her urge to march back in there and just start wailing on Jareth. It was easy to imagine that ending very badly for her though.

She stomped away from his study and towards her room, thankful that she had eaten well at lunch, though it did little for the heat radiating from her face and body from her outrage at being treated like this. She thought of as many colorful curses and ways to describe him as she could as she stomped along and she had just started to feel a little better when she rounded a corner and came upon Torik, who had his back to her as he faced Mavid, who was now carrying Toby against his hip. Mavid had been saying something to the smaller man but stopped when she rounded the corner and his eyes immediately flicked up to her. She couldn't see Torik's face, but his stiff stance indicated that he had not been enjoying the conversation.

Toby saw her too and immediately started fussing in Mavid's arms, wanting to get down. "Ma-ma-ma-ma-ma-ma-ma!"

That was something new that Toby had been doing recently actually, he would let Jareth hold him if he wanted, but anyone else could only keep him off the ground for maybe a minute or two. Mavid set the toddler down and Sarah stooped down to Toby's level as he ran straight into her, wrapping his little arms tightly around her. "Up!" he insisted.

Sarah hoisted him up, considering how much heavier he was getting. He still had a bit of his baby belly, but it was obvious he was losing it quickly. Regardless though it was probably a bit of a good thing that he wasn't wanting to be held as long all the time. "Down!" Toby insisted, even though she had just picked him up. He started to swing his legs to signal if she didn't do so he would throw a fit. _Just like his father, wants one thing, then another and throws a fit when not immediately accommodated_ , Sarah mused to herself, in her mind comparing Jareth to a toddler.

"Is Jareth done with you then?" Mavid asked her, moving over to her. As he walked by Torik, however, he slammed his shoulder into him rather than taking a step to the side, hitting him hard enough that Torik fell against the wall and barely stayed on his feet. The younger male turned around to glare daggers at Mavid's back, his face red with his own anger. Sarah knew just how he felt. Her blood froze in her veins when Toby started to laugh, having seen it too and now forgetting his earlier demand to be set down.

Mavid was completely unfazed, acting as though Torik had never even been in the hall in the first place.

"Apologize!" Sarah immediately snapped at the taller fae, unable to stand by and allow it to slide.

Mavid obviously hadn't been expecting that, raising a brow at her but doing nothing else.

"I don't want to ever see you giving Torik a hard time again," Sarah hissed at him. "And if you ever do that kind of thing in front of Toby again I will do more than just make you apologize!" She wasn't sure where all this bravado was coming from, or why it was spilling out now, but she was fed up. "The last thing Toby needs is to learn your bad manners, now apologize!"

Mavid's eyes narrowed on her. "I believe I asked you a question," he said, completely ignoring her threats.

"I believe she gave you an order!" Torik piped up from behind Mavid, his face still the picture of anger.

Mavid turned on the younger male once more and Sarah took a step forward, afraid he would do something to Torik, but a firm hand on her shoulder pulled her back.

"I believe that is correct, Mavid," came the cold voice of the goblin king.

Everyone in the hall looked back at Jareth, who still held firmly to Sarah's shoulder.

Mavid's gaze locked with Jareth's and Sarah wondered for a moment if he was going to argue. Jareth's face was still utterly cold and Sarah could tell by the pressure on her shoulder that he was still in a very bad mood from their fight just minutes before. Had he been coming to find Mavid? Or had he been watching her in his crystal to make sure she went straight to her room? Whatever the case, he was here now, and glaring down Mavid, who's own cheeks were glowing red with embarrassment and anger now.

After a brief hesitation in which Mavid just stood there, Jareth let go of Sarah's shoulder and stepped up to Mavid. Sarah just barely managed to cover Toby's eyes before Jareth struck Mavid across the face.

SMACK!

Mavid kept his ground, but his head did snap to the side and a very small bit of blood ran down the corner of his lip where Jareth had back-handed him.

Torik and Sarah had forgotten their anger and Sarah didn't know who looked more shocked right now. Mavid brought the back of his hand up to wipe at the blood that was trickling down to his chin and made sure not to make eye contact with Jareth as he bowed his head, anger still there on his face. He spun on his heel to face Torik, "I apologize for my behavior," spilling very quickly from his mouth and Torik managed to stop gaping and nodded his head in stiff acceptance.

Whether forced by Jareth or not, Sarah still couldn't believe Mavid had even said those words to Torik.

Jareth turned on Sarah almost as fast as Mavid had turned on Torik. "I thought I told you to head to your room."

Sarah fought down her urge to snap at him. "I- just on my way," she mumbled.

Jareth turned his head to Torik and Sarah could see the male practically pale under his gaze. "Walk the Queen back to her room, make sure she gets there quickly," Jareth ordered him.

Torik bowed low automatically. "Yes, your highness."

"Mavid, come with me," Jareth ordered him, turning his back on him before he could even see if he would follow and Sarah almost stepped back when Jareth turned to her once more, Mavid keeping his head lowered as he stepped up to Jareth's side. Jareth reached out and took Toby from her arms, who was willing enough to be held by Jareth. Jareth rested Toby against his hip, using his free hand he reached over and placed his hand against the back of Sarah's shoulder, pushing her forward a step or two down the hall. "Now, Sarah!"

He and Toby rounded the corner out of sight, Mavid on his heels and Sarah turned back to Torik.

"Sorry about that," Sarah muttered. "He's in a bad mood right now."

"The King or Mavid?" Torik asked.

Sarah couldn't keep from smirking as she thought about how Jareth had backhanded Mavid for not doing what she had told him to. "I suspect both at this point."

Torik nodded his head in agreement. "He ordered me to get you back to your room… would you mind…"

Sarah certainly didn't want either of them to get into more trouble, so she walked alongside Torik and headed back to her room. After they had gone a couple steps she couldn't help but ponder something. "Torik, what were you doing out in the hall without Ishapell? I don't think I've ever seen you out of her sight."

The boy next to her shrugged his slim shoulders. "That's because I try hard not to leave her sight if I don't have to," Torik confessed. "I have no say over myself, but she is my mistress. She can tell me 'no' if someone else tries to get me to do something. I'm safer next to her," Torik mumbled with a faint blush on his cheeks. "I was in the hall because I had gone back to our room for the bathroom. The goblins use the non-private ones. I was just on my way back."

"I'm sorry about Mavid, I don't know what his problem with you is."

To her surprise, a huge grin broke across Torik's face at that. Sarah certainly hadn't been expecting that. "He's just jealous of me."

Sarah couldn't help but raise an eyebrow at that. "Oh?"

Torik had thus far not made eye contact with her, staring straight at the floor in front of them as they walked. "Yeah, he's disliked me ever since I was purchased by Ish- my mistress's father as a pet for her. It's because he wants her. She told me once that he had let her know he would make himself available to her if she wished. When she told him no he got Jare-the king, your king, to ask her to reconsider."

She couldn't believe it, and at the same time, she could. "Jareth asked Ishapell to sleep with Mavid?"

Torik nodded, a bit of his grin fading around the edges. "Yeah, this was back when I was new here, about fifteen at the time."

"How old are you now? You don't look much older," Sarah pointed out, taking in his boyish and strangely feminine features once again.

"I've been here a while, but I'm not sure how long exactly. The seasons are sporadic so I can't even judge by that."

Sarah thought about how long she had been here. She couldn't remember how many Underground days and nights exactly and had no idea how that would translate to the Aboveground. "I think I probably missed my birthday," she said wistfully. "I didn't even think about it, but it wasn't far off when I came down here. I'm pretty sure I missed it though. I might be eighteen now." She couldn't help but feel a bit of sadness settling inside her at this realization, true it wasn't the biggest milestone in her life, but it was still an important one. She had been looking forward to driving more than anything. There had been an old station wagon in the driveway promised to her for her birthday.

"Yeah, they don't celebrate birthdays down here. The _fae_ don't anyway that's for sure."

"How did you come to be in the Underground?" Sarah asked him. She had been curious about it since she met him but hadn't gotten the chance to ask.

Torik's face turned red like he was embarrassed about it. "I'd rather not go into the details, but simply put I followed the wrong person down the wrong alley and when I woke up I was being prepared for auction on the market."

Sarah, of course, wanted to know more, but the way Torik stared down at his shuffling feet rather than at her… she couldn't bring herself to pry, even though she could order him to tell her.

"You were brought here by the Goblin King, right? You and his son?" Torik spoke up.

Sarah nodded her head, not wanting to go into details right now either.

Torik let out a low whistle like he was impressed. "It's my understanding that its extremely hard to travel between the worlds, and that's even when you can do so. I don't know much about their rules and stuff, but I do know that the Goblin King must be horrifically powerful to have brought you and the prince with him all at once."

"Really?" Sarah asked, her bitterness providing her with only a mild interest in what he had said.

"Really, no one in Ishapell's immediate family can do it, none of them have ever been to the Aboveground. I also happen to know that Mavid can't travel there either."

"Jareth seems to travel there just fine," Sarah sighed, wishing that he hadn't been able to.

"No one can go between the realms just because they want to, not even the council members. There are a few beings that have special circumstances in which they can travel to the Aboveground, but even then, you must be invited. When I first got here I spent a lot of my time trying to figure this stuff out… try to find my way back you know? I keep my ears and eyes open for a possibility, but anymore I'm happy enough with Ishapell to not lose sleep over it. She's been very kind to me."

"You're lucky then," Sarah sighed again, thinking about the way Jareth had just lost his temper with her again.

"I know I am," Torik confirmed, stepping up to open her door for her as they came to Sarah's room.

Sarah gave the younger male a thankful little smile before stepping into her room.

Torik paused in the doorway, looking awkward like he was debating if he should say something or not. "You know though… you are too in a different way. Lucky, that is."

Sarah rolled her eyes and started to turn away from him, but he continued before she could. "I can see why you certainly wouldn't think that. And I know in a way you are just as owned as I am, but in other ways, you do have more freedom. Like if you yell or hit me, I couldn't stop you… if I tried to do that to you… I'd be dead. Your freedoms might be smoothed down a little, but mine were all stomped out of me. You don't have to feel lucky or anything, I wouldn't if I was you… but none the less… you _are_ kind of lucky."

Sarah didn't know what to say to that. She had nothing to say, so she merely thanked him for walking her back to her room.

Torik gave her a low customary bow before closing her door behind her.

X

Jareth's anger was still rolling through him in fluid waves like it was coursing through his very veins. He was just angry right now! Angry at Sarah, at Mavid, at the goblin kingdom, the Labyrinth, and everything beyond it! It was all infuriating to him right now. He was beyond tired of the pettiness between his queen and his attendant, both thinking they didn't have to respect the other, and Sarah thinking she didn't have to respect him. He wondered if maybe he should just lock them both in a room with weapons and let them literally battle it out.

He let out a heavy sigh and laid back on the soft grass beneath him, looking up at the moon between the heavy branches of his favorite willow tree. He had hardly eaten much at supper and had given up trying after a bit to come out here to his secluded spot in the garden to try to cool off.

Though the air was cold, the wind that was outside couldn't get into the garden hidden within his crystal, so his rage was keeping him warm enough for the moment.

 _Damn it all_ , he cursed to himself. He wished more than anything right now that he could just take a vacation. Get away from all of it. When he had been younger, before he had ever become a king, he had once spent many seasons in a small castle that his father had been born in overlooking the sea. There had been a little village nearby with a mix of beings living there, so much so that you couldn't even tell what the majority was. It had been simple and peaceful and it had been the first time he had been allowed to live without servants waiting on him at every turn, just him, Mavid, and a caretaker brownie who looked after the Manor.

He wanted to go back there again now, even though he knew that wasn't possible. He had too much he had to see to. Too much he was responsible for. He thought about the scars on his attendants back and shut his eyes against them, as though that would keep him from seeing them any longer. The creatures that lived in his Labyrinth, and in the goblin city… simple as they were they were still his responsibility and he would not shirk that.

"Dada!" Toby shouted, causing Jareth to lift his head from the ground.

Near his feet Toby stood with his hands in the air as he tried hard to catch a fairy that was flying just beyond his hands, giggling at him.

Jareth sat up and watched as his son tried for her again, but she easily flew back from him. "Bug!" Toby shouted excitedly.

Jareth couldn't help but chuckle at that, a smile splitting across his face despite the mood he was in.

The little fairy started to fly back a little further, and of course, Toby started to go after her.

"You stay where I can see you," Jareth called after him, watching for a while as Toby chased her around, never even coming close to catching her. When he was about twenty feet away Jareth sat up a little straighter. "That's far enough," he warned Toby sternly.

"Bug! Bug!" Toby insisted, following the fairy out even further.

"Toby no!" Jareth ordered him, his son coming to a halt and turning back to look at Jareth. The look on the toddler's face was as if he was gauging how serious his father was and if he would be in trouble if he ignored him. Jareth kept his face strict. "Back here now."

His son debated it a little more, looking over his shoulder to the fairy, only to see that she had left him. Toby looked around for her, but when he eventually didn't see her, he ran back up the hill to his father, a big grin on his face.

"You're just happy because it's past your bedtime," Jareth smiled at him as Toby straddled his lap.

"Bub-ubbles!" Toby demanded, wanting to play with more of his father's magic crystals.

Jareth obliged him and summoned up a crystal, passing it to Toby… who cried out with laughter when he hit it and it popped.

"One day you will be able to make your own," Jareth mused out loud as his son demanded more of them to pop. Jareth made more without hesitation.

It amused him greatly how much power his son had over him, Jareth knew it was more than he, in fact, had over his son. Nothing brought him more pleasure than his son. Anything Toby asked him for he gave to him, and he was the first to jump to his feet if Toby was upset over anything. Jareth looked at the sheer and utter joy on Toby's face and only wanted to give more to him, to do more for him.

This was what he tried to give to Sarah many times, this kind of power over him. Each time she would only reject and disappoint him and he would have to take back the power.

Toby loved, feared, and obeyed him… and in doing so he owned him. Jareth wasn't fooling himself by thinking anything less.

He wished that Sarah was out here now actually, sharing in this with him as Toby popped another crystal. She loved Toby as much as he did, and was just as powerless before him as Jareth was.

Jareth couldn't help but laugh, his bad mood lifted like magic. "Well played, Toby!" he laughed, "You have done the impossible and won over Sarah's heart. You make it look so easy too, yet I can't seem to make any leeway."

Jareth rolled over so Toby was on his back beneath him, Jareth crouched over him on all fours as he reached down and tickled his son's side, who screamed with laughter and rolled first this way then that, his little feet kicking up at Jareth's chest as he struggled.

"Is that why she can't love me?" Jareth continued to muse out loud even though there was no way for his son to hear him over his own laughter. "Is it because you have stolen her heart all for yourself?"

"Ma'ma!" Toby screamed, obviously wanting Sarah to come to his rescue as he continued to howl with laughter.

Jareth eased up on the tickling and when Toby started to cough from laughing too hard he stopped immediately and both took a moment to catch their breath.

"Dada no!" Toby laughed as he collected himself.

Jareth laughed too and laid down on the grass next to his son. Looking him over at the way his arms and legs were growing long and thin, and the way his baby belly was starting to slim down some. His neck was a lot more pronounced than it had been. And Jareth was surprised to see that a few freckles were appearing on his son's forearms. His hair, the exact same shade as Jareth's was getting really long. Sarah had mentioned wanting to cut it a while back… Jareth had forbidden it. Not that Toby couldn't use a trim, but Sarah had mentioned cutting it almost all the way against his head! His son would be laughed at if he walked around in what Sarah had called a 'buzz-cut'.

He hadn't gotten his first trim till he had been much older than Toby was now. His hair had been all the way down his back before his mother had ever thought to have the ends cut up to his shoulders. Mavid kept his hair short in back so the brand on the back of his neck that marked him as Jareth's could be easily seen, the strands up by his face still hung down to his chest. And his father's still hung down his back. Short hair was unnatural.

Toby jumped up to his feet again, grabbing one of the branches that hung down low enough for him to reach on the willow tree and started to pull down further. Jareth sat up and gently removed his hand from it before he could cause harm to it. That had to be the human instincts in him. "Toby no, you mustn't do that. It makes the tree hurt when it's branches break," Jareth explained, hoping Toby would at least get the gist of what he was telling him and not try it again.

Toby understood 'no' at least and so turned his attention from the willow tree to sit back down on the grass, a big yawn escaping him.

"I think someone might finally be tired," Jareth sighed, standing up from the ground and scooping Toby up with him.

"No!" Toby screamed, not wanting to go to bed even though he was tired.

Jareth placed a kiss on his son's cheek and to calm him down as they headed back Jareth sang softly to him, "You remind me of the babe, babe with the power…"

X

Jareth opened the door to Sarah's room, finding her laying down on her bed reading one of the books he had placed in there for her when it was being prepared for her. As soon she saw him she put it down though, not even bothering to mark her page at all, and sat up in her bed. She was tense, and worry was on her face. She was probably afraid that he was still mad.

He wasn't, thanks to his son, but he kept his features stern as he stepped into her room, leaving the door open behind him. "I just put Toby to bed," he told her. "I told you when I sent you up here that I expected an apology for the way you spoke to me earlier. Once you have given it to me you may go say goodnight to our son."

The barest traces of a frown almost formed on her face but Jareth watched as she forced them away, keeping her face neutral before she made herself look melancholy. "I'm sorry I swore at you… and yelled at you," she said plaintively.

 _What a little actress_ , he mused to himself. "Why did you do it?"

There was a pause then and he knew she was picking out an answer. This was a sad apology, but far from the worst, he had ever gotten. "I was still upset I guess… about Lilith. Maybe I took it out on you," she said, hardly sounding like she even believed it.

Did she ever think she really fooled him when she did this? Did she even manage to fool herself? She might have thought herself a fine actress, but she failed to see just how young she still was at it. In her world, she would have likely ended up another penniless actor sharing a one bedroom apartment with three others out of work humans till one day she was told by someone auditioning her the horrible truth and would finally break down and go home crushed and in debt and worn out because the sad truth was that even if you love to do something, you can't be great at it if you ever think you have nothing more to learn. Once more Jareth allowed her to slide by with it though.

"You're not going to do it again are you," Jareth drawled.

This was the trouble with improper punishments. She didn't feel bad for it, she didn't mean her apology, she had no consequences that would stick in her mind the next time before she thought to do so again. And she would do so again. Then it would be up to Jareth to take them through another of these ultimately pointless exercises or give her a lesson to remember that she would probably think him evil for, but he would only have to do it once.

"I won't do it again," Sarah agreed, her eyes already on the door behind him.

Jareth closed his eyes against a headache he was getting. He didn't have the energy to give her what she really needed tonight. Next time she did it he would try to remember not to go easy on her at all.

For now, though, he simply moved to the side. "See that you don't," he said as Sarah quickly went past him and to the nursery.

He had planned to explain more of the breeding process to her, give her an idea of what to expect so that tomorrow would be a little easier on her than having everything thrown at her on the spot, but he would wait till morning instead. He didn't even have the energy for that tonight. He left her room door open for her, going into his room through their adjoining door and locked it behind him. He would sleep in his bed alone tonight, despite the coldness of the castle.

X

"Hey Toby, did you have a good day?" Sarah smiled down at him.

He was laying in his crib, his eyes cracked open just the barest amount and a bottle was gripped tight between his hand and his teeth, but he wasn't drinking it. Tallia was quietly folding up some cloth by the changing shelf. She hadn't spoken a word or hardly looked at Sarah since she walked in.

"Probably not since you were stuck with your father all day," Sarah muttered as she stroked her fingertips down his soft little arm. _He's starting to get a couple freckles there_ , she thought to herself. "He shouldn't put you to bed so late, but I'm glad he did so I could see you before you fell asleep… though it seems I just barely made it," she whispered to him.

Toby's eyes started to flutter and Sarah remembered how back in the Aboveground before all this craziness had happened she used to tell Toby stories before he would fall asleep, and sometimes even afterward. Stories about places like the Underground, the beings who lived in them and the adventures they would have.

Funny that now she knew those stories weren't just a lot of nonsense.

She watched Toby stare up at her for a few more minutes, thinking about the stories she used to tell him. It was almost out of nowhere that an idea occurred to her. It was just an idea at first, as most things usually are… but it stuck and after a moment she couldn't help but smile with how genius it seemed to her.

"Toby, do you want to hear a story?" she asked him, just like she used to back home. "I'm going to tell you a story. It's about magic, and far off places, and the strange and wonderful creatures that live together in this magical world called the Aboveground!"

Tallia looked up at that, the expression on her face unreadable but Sarah ignored her, keeping her attention on Toby instead.

"In the Aboveground there is this really big kingdom… called America. And you and I are from a smaller kingdom inside that one, called Wisconsin."

"I don't know if you should be telling him these things, your majesty," Tallia spoke up.

Sarah just shrugged. "Then go tell Jareth, but it's not hurting Toby at all to know about the Aboveground." she turned back down to Toby. "We're from a little town in Wisconsin too, Toby. In America, there is a king there who tries to take care of the kingdom, but he's called the president, and he shares his power with a lot of other people. Do you know what I miss most about the Aboveground right now? I mean besides the stuff I always miss… my friends, home, and father… I'll tell you all about them some other time…" Sarah stroked her hand through his overly long strands of blonde hair, pushing them out of his face and he closed his little eyes at her touch. "Right now, I miss walking on the sidewalk with my dog Merlin to the gas station down the street and buying a strawberry soda."

"Doing what?" Tallia asked, her attention fixed on Sarah now. She clearly didn't understand most of what Sarah had just said.

Sarah couldn't help but laugh softly. "A strawberry soda, it's a fruity-tasting drink that bubbles and makes people burp," Sarah felt her grin get wider as she remembered. "In fact, in the Aboveground people seem to burp almost all the time! Probably because of all the soda and processed foods, but they can't help it, and they often don't hide it. A lot of people don't even apologize for it!"

Tallia looked disgusted, which only made Sarah want to laugh again.

"You know, I make that face for a lot of the things that happen down here," Sarah mused, turning back to Toby. "You might have liked orange soda Toby or even Mountain Dew. It seems most of the boys I know like that stuff. They have hundreds of flavors though and are making up new ones all the time. I've yet to see a single sidewalk in the underground, but there's something nice about walking down them in the summer when the air is hot and the breeze is cool and you walk on whatever side of the street has more shade."

"He's asleep your highness," Tallia spoke up again, breaking Sarah from her memories long enough for her to look down and see that he indeed was. Sarah smoothed back a little bit more of his hair. "I'll tell him more tomorrow night then," she shrugged.

"I'm sorry I'll miss that," Tallia murmured.

Sarah stood up straight then. "Won't you be here?"

Tallia looked just a little bit sad as she came over to stand on the other side of the crib, gazing down at Toby with warm fondness as she reached down to stroke him just as Sarah had. "No, my milk is about dried up, and the prince no longer needs it. I offered to stay on as a regular nurse, but the King says it won't be necessary."

Sarah was surprised, to say the least, Tallia had been here if she had. "Are you- that is… do you _want_ to leave?"

"A part of me does, a part of me doesn't," Tallia sighed. "I'm being well paid for my service to the prince, I can afford my own cottage somewhere when I go. It will be bittersweet to go though. I wish I could take him with me of course." she looked up at Sarah from across the top of the crib then. "You know I used to be an attendant?"

Sarah didn't of course, knowing almost nothing of Tallia's life before she came here.

"I was," Tallia confirmed, "My mistress wanted to breed me. The pregnancy didn't end well, however…" Tallia's eyes were suddenly full of tears and she stopped talking for a while as she battled with her past. "I had milk to give though, and it just so happened that the Goblin King had a newborn in need. He contacted my mistress and had me brought here to care for his son instead."

"Tallia… I'm so sorry to hear that. Are you not going to go back to your… mistress?" Sarah stumbled over the term.

Tallia shook her head, "I love her deeply, but I don't want to live an attendant's life anymore. Jareth's money allows me that option. And… helping your son… I think it's helped me too. I wanted to die along with my own son before I came here."

"Tallia… you never said anything about this before…" Sarah said, her own eyes starting to burn with tears.

The fae merely shrugged. "I know, I didn't want anyone to know about it. When people know that sort of thing, every time they look at you that's all they think about. I'm only saying anything about it now to you because I'm leaving tomorrow morning first thing, and I wanted you to know that this meant a lot to me. You and the King are the only ones who know this, and I'd like to keep it that way."

Sarah couldn't help but feel touched. She looked down at Toby snoozing in his crib between them again.

"Do you have a pair of scissors?" she asked Tallia, "You can't take Toby with you, but would you accept a lock of his hair? If he knew what it meant I'm sure he'd be happy for you to have it."

Tallia's eyes widened at that and she backed up from the crib. "Oh no, miss. I couldn't accept that."

"Why not, he needs a haircut anyway," Sarah shrugged. "The poor kid can't even see."

Tallia hesitated, clearly wishing she could accept it. "But the king will be upset."

"He always is," Sarah shrugged again, "But he'll get over it and Toby's hair will grow back. He paid you, I want to too is all. If he does get upset I'll be sure he takes it up with me."

"Well… please… just a small lock then," Tallia finally relented, pulling a small dagger from a large traveling bag that sat on the floor behind her. "This was my father's." She passed it over the crib to Sarah, who took the dagger carefully and reached down into the crib, very carefully taking a lock between her fingers and cut away from Toby, severing the long lock down to about two inches in length. She couldn't help but smile when the strand immediate curled up against his head.

She handed the strand over to Tallia, who took it carefully and wrapped it in a handkerchief, placing it into her traveling bag.

"You can have more if you want," Sarah told her, "I'm going to cut the rest of his hair while he's still sleeping."

Tallia's eyes bugged again. "His Majesty will certainly be furious."

Sarah simply shrugged, cutting off another strand of hair.

"I'll protect what I have with my life," Tallia vowed, "But be sure you burn the rest of it, miss. Hair can be used in curses."

While that did surprise Sarah, she wasn't willing to doubt it and so she located a bowl over near Toby's little bathing stand to put any hair in that she cut off. She could keep it in her room for the night and burn it tomorrow during the day at some point. Tallia said no more about it but helped her in no way as she sat back and watched as Sarah used her father's dagger to cut the many strands of Toby's hair. "Do you know that Mavid is being bred tomorrow?" Sarah found herself asking the female softly to not wake Toby up.

Tallia seemed surprised at the topic but nodded her head. "Yes."

"I don't know hardly anything about it," Sarah admitted, thinking back to how Jareth had lost his temper with her. "Could you… if it's not too painful for you that is… could you tell me anything about it? What all does it involve?"

Tallia seemed hesitant, but at length spoke up, "It's not too painful to remember the breeding itself… but I only know from my own experiences and others might go about it differently than my own mistress did."

"Knowing anything is better than knowing nothing," Sarah assured her. "I just hear breeding' and right away I think about prize-winning Derby horses being put out to stud. I would feel a lot better if I got some reassurance that it's different from that."

"I don't know about your 'Derby horses' but the bare basics of mine were that my mistress found a male attendant with a good reputation for his abilities and complimenting traits and after they made financial and contractual agreements I was sent to a healer every day to track when I would be most ready to conceive. When that happened, I was prepared and introduced to the male I would be bred with and the act was overseen by both our benefactors. A few weeks later I was announced to be pregnant."

Some reassurance.

"Did you know the male you did that with beforehand?"

Tallia shook her head. "No, I did not."

"Have you heard from him since then?"

Tallia again shook her head. "No, but my mistress informed his master of the turnout of the pregnancy."

Jeez, it _was_ a lot like Derby horses.

"Do you know what Mavid thinks about it?" she asked her, remembering that when she had asked him he had gone off on her about it being his duty and honor and such. "I don't know if he talks to you much but-"

"He doesn't," Tallia interrupted. "He doesn't talk about anything like that with me. His mind is extremely one-tracked when I'm with him. I don't know if this will help you any, but I can say that he has not appeared more aggressive than usual, nothing to suggest he is angry."

"That's… good," Sarah answered awkwardly.

She clipped the last long strand from Toby's head and inspected her handy-work. His golden hair now curled around his head like an angel's and he looked so much like a little prince it was heart-warming. The cut was a little uneven she supposed, but good for it being her first time cutting hair with a knife.

"What do you think?" Sarah smiled, glancing up at Tallia as the female came back over to the crib to peer in.

"He looks handsome, but I really wish you hadn't done that my lady. His Majesty will surely be enraged."

Sarah rolled her eyes, tired of hearing about it. If Jareth got mad at her for this perhaps she would at least get to miss out on Mavid's breeding. Besides, it would be ridiculous for him to get mad about something that could easily grow back over time, though if that was the case she hoped Toby's hair would at least grow back slowly. There was no going back on it now anyway.

"Thank you again, Miss," Tallia sighed, standing back up from the crib. "I hope happiness for you both in the future."

Sarah smiled weakly back. "You too. Best of luck with that cottage idea of yours in case I don't get to see you tomorrow."

Tallia bowed low. "Good night your highness."

X

Sarah sat back in her seat next to the fireplace, a forgotten book resting on her lap as she watched Toby play on the floor in front of her. She couldn't help but smirk at how cute and sweet his little curls made him look. Jareth had discovered what she had done early in the morning.

To say he took it well was a lie… but he didn't start screaming or anything like Sarah had thought he would, though when he saw it he muttered something about if he knew where the missing hair was he would use it to strangle her. That had been all he had said to her though… all day. He was furious and horrified to find his son's hair cut without his permission, it was obvious by the way he stood so rigid. So far though Sarah had only received the silent treatment from him, though the few times she had seen him during the day the way he looked at her told her that in his mind he was probably cussing her out up one side and down the other. He was so angry with her she practically got chills from how cold he was to her. She had tried to talk to him once during lunch… asking him when the pixies would be arriving. His response was to peg her with a glare before turning back to his meal without saying a word. She hadn't tried again.

She was thankful he wasn't yelling at her or hitting her…yet… but she still couldn't help feeling he was being unreasonable about the whole thing. Toby could see now, and he looked even more adorable than before. Sarah glanced up from Toby to where Mavid was sitting down across the room from her.

With Tallia having left before she had even woken up, Jareth had seemed to have ordered Mavid to stick with Toby throughout the day. Sarah supposed he didn't trust her to be left alone with him. Clora and Ishapell had both been shocked by Toby's appearance too, but whether they approved of it or not had not been said yet… probably wise not to pick sides on their part. With Mavid being there the whole time the day had been supremely boring… nobody wanted to talk about anything just in case something wrong got said. Mavid being amongst them was like having Jareth right there. That was probably why Ishapell and Clora had asked her if they could go back to their rooms till supper. They had never done that before, but she supposed it would be less boring for them today than sticking around.

Sarah tried to ignore Mavid entirely as best she could after that… but, despite his talents, he wasn't much of a shadow outside of his dark form.

Sarah glanced up at him again. He was staring right at the fire, lost in his own thoughts, and Sarah couldn't help but notice that his leg was bouncing nervously. If it was going to happen yet today, surely the pixies had to be arriving soon. It was already getting dark outside. Sarah decided to break the silence.

"When is the breeding going to happen?"

Mavid snapped out of his own thoughts and turned his head to her. "What- oh yeah… they should be here in another hour or so." He turned back to the fire.

Sarah's eyes widened a little at his mannerisms. "Are you nervous?"

His knee immediately stopped bouncing. "No," he sneered, keeping his attention fixed on the fire.

She had never seen him nervous about something before, though she could understand him being worried for this. A small part of her felt bad and wanted to reassure him… though that part was very small. She still had too much heart to tease him or anything like that right now though.

The door to the room they were sitting in opened and Sarah was surprised to see Aboris following Jareth into the room, both looking very business-like as they came in. Jareth picked Toby up off the floor and gave his forehead a kiss, turning his head so Toby could return the kiss on his cheek. "Dada play," Toby demanded.

Jareth smiled at Toby and Sarah watched as he twirled one of Toby's curls around his finger, casting a sideways glare at Sarah as he did so, but didn't acknowledge her any further than that.

"How are you feeling Mavid?" Aboris asked as he took a small jar from his pocket.

"Fine," came the automatic response.

"You can take one of these now if you like," the elf healer said, dumping something out of his jar and handing it to Mavid, who took the little sliver of a stick from Aboris and Sarah watched without knowing what was going on as he cracked it underneath his nose and inhaled deeply, letting out a shuddering breath before handing the remnants of whatever that had been back to the medic.

"Shall we help you get ready?"

Sarah could tell that it wasn't a question Mavid really had a choice in… just like the rest of this really… and couldn't think of anything to do or say as Mavid nodded his head tightly and stood up to follow Aboris out into the hall.

Jareth placed Toby on the ground so he could walk. "Follow Mavid, son," he told him softly. Sarah watched as Toby immediately ran after them and Jareth followed behind. "Sarah, come," Jareth commanded… the second thing he had said to her all day.

She wished she could have felt absolutely insulted, and although she still resented him greatly when he ordered her around like that, she supposed a part of her was sort of getting used to it at this point. Whenever she thought about things like that she just wanted to hit him for treating her like he always did. Despite not wanting to follow along, Sarah hesitantly got up from the couch and hurried after them since no one was waiting for her. She didn't want to leave Toby alone with them after all.

X

They made their way back to Aboris' healing room where most of the elf's stuff had been cleared out. A very large water basin sat in the corner of the room, with a few chairs set up across the room from it. There was also one cot left behind towards the center of the room.

Jareth allowed Toby to look about the room, going over and taking a seat on one of the chairs against the wall, crossing his arms over his chest as he looked on as if he were watching something as routine as a goblin falling over. Mavid was nervous… as was to be expected. Jareth had never heard of a male or female going into breeding without nerves. It was often in fact that a first attempt at the mating itself would be unsuccessful… which is why preparations were necessary to try to help ease the process.

Sarah looked about the room quickly to make sure Toby couldn't get at anything dangerous, then hesitantly went over to sit next to Jareth, who purposefully ignored her. He had no intention after what she had done to make this easy for her, explaining nothing. He could hardly even sit in his seat next to her because he was still so vexed. She had to be doing things to intentionally piss him off at this point, and that's what made him madder than anything else about this… though he was plenty mad that she had dared to violate his son's hair after he had already ordered her not to.

"Go ahead and strip down then, you know the procedure," Aboris said to Mavid, all emotion stricken from his features or voice.

Sarah tensed even worse than Mavid at those words and Jareth fought not to smirk at her discomfort to not seem disrespectful towards his friend.

Mavid took his vest off with shaky movements of his hands and Sarah turned her head away when he removed his leggings as well, her face stained a bright red.

Jareth leaned in close to her now. "Keep all opinions to yourself tonight, starting right now or you'll be very very sorry!" he warned her, meaning every word.

Sarah looked him in the eye then, but rather than the anger he had expected he was momentarily surprised to see she looked only worried and a little scared at this point. Why did she look like that? It wasn't like she had to do anything tonight but stand there in support of Mavid. "Tonight, I don't want to hear you so much as breathe, and if you can't watch something than lower your eyes but do not turn your head down or away. You understand me?" he pressed, keeping his voice low enough that only she could hear him as Mavid got down into the large washing basin.

After a pause Sarah nodded her head, looking very put out as she turned back to the scene before them, her eyes only half closed now that half of Mavid's body was hidden from sight. _She'd better grow up_ , Jareth thought bitterly to himself, _she'll see far worse than just a little flesh before the night is over_.

Toby suddenly went running over to the basin, placing his hands on the edge to watch as Mavid washed up. "Bath time!" Toby shouted excitedly and Jareth couldn't help but sigh in relief as Mavid let out a hard laugh as Toby broke a lot of the tension with just one poorly pronounced sentence.

"That's right, little prince," Mavid chuckled. "Bath time."

"Toby," Jareth said, getting his son's attention, who turned back to him with a toothy grin. "Show Mavid how you wash your face," he coaxed the toddler.

Mavid laughed again and Jareth could see him relax a bit more as Toby turned back to him and started rubbing his hands all over his face. Mavid imitated Toby, who immediately gripped the side of the tub and jumped up and down a little with his own pride like he had just taught Mavid how to do it.

"Toby, how do you wash your tummy? Show Mavid." Jareth continued to chuckle.

Toby showed him and Mavid tried not to laugh as he imitated Toby again. Aboris even laughed softly and it didn't escape Jareth when Sarah even cracked the very smallest of smiles. This was why children were wonderful, and why Jareth wanted more of them. Toby was such a wonderful child too, Jareth felt proud as he went on to show Mavid how to wash his arms and hair.

Once Mavid had finished scrubbing himself down Aboris poured a couple jugs of water over him to rinse him off and Toby laughed at the way the water poured off him as he stood back up to get out, taking the towel Aboris offered him to dry off with. Jareth glanced over to Sarah and was surprised to find her not staring at the floor or trying to turn away, but looking over Mavid from under her eyelids with a meager curiosity.

Jareth watched as Mavid wrapped the towel around his hips and moved over to the cot as Aboris instructed him. Toby watched more, then came running back over to him and Sarah, pulling at his father's hand. "Me bath next!" he demanded, probably thinking it to be fun now that he had watched Mavid do it. Jareth couldn't help but smirk as he picked Toby up and turned him around to sit on his lap.

"You had your bath this morning," Jareth reminded him.

"Me bath!" Toby demanded again.

"Toby, watch what Aboris is doing," Jareth enticed him before he could start to really fuss.

Toby turned back to watch as Mavid laid down on the cot and Aboris listened to his heart and started tapping in strategic places against his flat stomach. "Deep breaths, Mavid, it's only a checkup," Aboris reminded him.

After a minute or two of more poking and prodding, Aboris announced that he was 'good' and had him stand up again. "I'll ask you to lift the towel and turn around towards the cot and place your hands on its surface," Aboris instructed him.

Jareth knew what was coming and looked at Sarah for this one out of the corner of his eye rather than at what Aboris was doing. He watched as Sarah's curious gaze suddenly changed with her eyes bugging out comically wide and that harsh blush was back on her cheeks as she struggled to not turn away and just closed her eyes.

"I thought I was supposed to mate with a female," Mavid joked, his voice strained.

Jareth laughed from his own nerves too and Sarah blushed harder.

"Okay you're good," Aboris said again.

Once Jareth heard Mavid shuffling around again he looked back up. "Physically fit, that's for sure," Aboris assured both him and Jareth as he went to wash his hands.

Toby started to fidget in Jareth's lap, wanting down so he could run around some more and Jareth couldn't help but smile. If everything went right they could have another baby in the castle in a matter of months after all. The female he had chosen for Mavid to breed with had features that Jareth believed would not only result in a strong child but a fair one too. Whether it was a boy or girl he hoped that it would retain Mavid's ability to hide in the shadows like he had retained his father's ability to shape shift. Aboris handed Mavid a simple white robe instead of his clothes and the male took it without a word, dropping the towel and sliding into it.

Toby started to really fuss and so Jareth put him down, watching as he ran back over to the basin and started reaching down to hit his hand lightly against the water's surface.

Mavid hopped back up on the cot and Aboris started getting a couple things ready next to him. Mavid's eyes darted over to what Aboris was doing and then back over to Jareth. "What did you think of breakfast this morning?" he asked.

Jareth couldn't help the grim little smile that came to his face. "I hardly remember what it was." At that time, he had still been absolutely fuming over Toby's surprise haircut.

"I remember there were grapes," Mavid said.

"You would remember that, wouldn't you?" Jareth smiled, trying not to break eye contact with Mavid as Aboris moved his arm out away from his body. Jareth knew Mavid liked grapes, but the discussion going on was meaningless. He could feel Sarah's confusion as she listened to the two of them talk, not understanding it.

"I don't see why they don't serve them more often," Mavid muttered as Aboris quickly brought up a ready needle and gave Mavid a shot in the arm as the male tensed all over and broke into a light sweat.

"Perhaps we'll see about that," Jareth muttered, watching as his friend tried not to think about the last shot that was yet to come. Since they were children they had been doing this. Jareth didn't like needles at all but could take them a lot better than his attendant could. Mavid had always hated needles with a passion and although he was too old now to scream and cry like he had as a child, Mavid still needed to be distracted.

"Should I give the second one now or in a little while?" Aboris asked Jareth.

"How long did you say it would be till it took effect?" Jareth asked, feeling bad for Mavid, who looked as though someone had just cursed him.

"Probably about ten or fifteen minutes, depending."

Sarah was tense beside him again, and he could practically feel her wanting to ask what they were talking about. She didn't seem ready to test his earlier threat though. What Aboris was doing though was injecting a drug into Mavid that would help keep his mind fuzzy so he could stay half-way calm despite the pressure and the second shot would force his member to attention so whether he could perform wouldn't be a factor.

"They should be arriving at the guest manor any minute," Jareth said. "Hold off till they arrive though. I don't want Mavid suffering if they should arrive a little bit late."

Aboris nodded his head in agreement. "Probably just as well, he might take it better if he hardly knows it's happening." Aboris hunched down a little so he was level with Mavid, making sure his pupils were dilating just a little. "How are you feeling Mavid, the scale of one to ten, ten being great and one being bad."

"I guess a… eight I guess," Mavid mumbled, jumping a little along with the rest of them when Toby slapped his hand hard against the water, laughing when it spilled over the sides.

"Toby, stop that!" Jareth ordered sternly. Causing Toby to jump with his own surprise and Jareth had to fight with himself not to completely melt when Toby's face fell and he started to whimper, running from the basin over to Sarah, who simply let out a little sigh and picked him up to comfort him. Jareth had hardly even raised his voice at him in all honestly, it had just startled the toddler.

Mavid started to rub at his face. "It's cold in here," he muttered, wrapping the robe around him tighter.

"A small side-effect, but you should have no trouble keeping warm later," Aboris assured him, pocketing the second syringe after he capped it.

Jareth got up from his chair and moved over to Mavid, not knowing what he could say that would make him any calmer than the drug already had. He instead reached out and gave the male's shoulder a reassuring squeeze. "We should head down to the manor."

"W-what about Toby?" Sarah finally piped up. Toby had calmed down by now but was still sniveling against her neck.

Jareth was willing to let that one slide… this one time. "He will be coming with us. There is no reason for him not to."

Sarah looked dumbfounded at that logic. "You don't think it would be inappropriate for him to see-"

"It's only sex," Jareth snapped at her. "I told you to keep quiet."

Sarah glared at him but kept her mouth shut.

 _Wising up,_ Jareth thought bitterly to himself.


	35. Chapter 35

_Beta for this chapter is ASunInWinter_

 _X_

Sarah felt mad enough to spit as she rocked Toby against her, standing next to Jareth in the front hall of the little manor she had been dragged along to. She couldn't believe he thought Toby had any business being here for this.

The pixie royals Craw and Olay had arrived and were as stupid and vain as she had first perceived them to be. Jareth had told Sarah not to speak at all, and so far she hadn't needed to… Jareth having already told Queen Olay that she was thin. She was fine with not having to talk to them actually. They seemed to have a snarky comment about everything Jareth had to say to them.

The manor was indeed much smaller than the castle, but it was clean enough that it looked like a goblin had never so much as laid eyes on it. She wanted to walk around and explore it and was sure Toby would have wanted to as well if he hadn't fallen asleep in her arms after crying over Jareth telling him 'no'. There was only the bare-minimum of old furniture scattered about in here, and Sarah couldn't help but be surprised that Jareth owned anything so simple.

The pixies weren't the only ones that had shown up of course. Their attendant had surprised Sarah, who was expecting another Pixie, but instead of one of the shorter skin-and-bone creatures stood a female who, though still thin, was a little more healthy-looking and was a little taller than Sarah was. Her face was thin and blockish and her body looked the same from underneath the black robe she wore. Her shiny black hair was braided down her back all the way to the backs of her thighs and it sort of reminded Sarah of the thick whip Jareth had used to punish her with once before.

She noticed also that the female's eyes were such a pale blue that they were silver, and were dilated and glazed over. She stood just as relaxed as Mavid did—obviously also having been drugged—behind her owners and she watched with unfocused eyes as Aboris gave Mavid the second shot.

Mavid took this one better, although he did flinch back at first.

"Shall we head into the next room?" Jareth urged everyone once the formalities of hello had been dealt with.

Sarah hiked Toby up a little higher and followed Jareth when he placed his hand on her back to lead her with him in front of the group… _like a good host and hostess_ , Sarah thought bitterly. As if she had anything to do with this. If she hadn't asked Tallia about it she still wouldn't know a thing about what was supposed to be happening. Jareth was apparently mad enough at her to just leave her to trial by fire. She was actually a little glad she had Toby with her since he had fallen asleep. This way she could just hold him and hope he didn't actually see anything. He was growing heavy in her arms, but she preferred to hold him right now. He gave her something else to focus on and without him she felt she would be just standing around looking and feeling awkward as she wished for it to all be over.

The room they all went into was furnished with two couches set up next to each other against the wall. A small table was between them holding glasses and what looked like a couple bottles of wine just ready and waiting to be served.

The majority of the room though had been turned into a sort of 'love nest' with the floor being covered and stacked with deep purple blankets and a mattress over against one side, a chair against the other… probably if they wanted options or something like that.

Even as attention-catching as the 'love nest' was, it still wasn't actually the first thing she noticed. There was no way anyone wouldn't first notice the fact that the room was full of other creatures… or at least a majority of their heads! Sarah stopped in her tracks in the doorway, much to Jareth's annoyance as he tried to pull her along as her eyes darted around the stuffed and mounted heads and bodies of creatures around the room. _This must have been some sort of hunting lodge of Jareth's,_ she thought to herself with a wince not personally caring for that sort of thing. The walls were full of the different species staring out at each other with glass eyes and Sarah found herself gawking at a hawk's head that was almost as large as she was centered over the fireplace on the far side of the room across from the couches.

Sarah immediately wanted to turn around and simply leave the room.

The pixies both looked rather pleased with the whole thing, King Craw immediately heading over to the little wine table. "Very nice Jareth," he complemented, "I had worried there that we would have to do this surrounded by hooting and hollering goblins, messy creatures, but I'm glad to see you think things through more than that."

Tact was definitely lacking amongst the pixie breed. Sarah looked over to Jareth, who kept his face neutral despite the jabs. "Of course," came the simple reply. Sarah figured he really must have wanted this to happen to put up with Craw and Olay like this.

Toby was getting heavier in her arms so she went over to the couch further away from Craw and took a seat closest to the wall rather than the wine, moving Toby around so he could lay against her more comfortably as she tried her utmost to ignore the little stuffed dragon's head on the wall behind her.

Olay idled over to the couches too, though her eyes were glued on the wine, taking the bottle and two wine glasses with her back over to their husbands. Sarah watched with no interest… until Olay handed the bottle to Jareth with the expectation of him to open it as she handed her extra glass to her own king.

The look that first flashed over Jareth's face when he was handed the bottle while the pixies held out their wine glasses would have probably made Sarah smile if she didn't equally dislike the pixies. It was obvious he wanted to say something biting about it, possibly even throw the bottle on the ground rather than blatantly serve them, but their attendants were both too incapacitated and Jareth was the one trying to keep those fools happy so they didn't back out of this out of pettiness.

Jareth clenched his jaw and gripped the bottle firmly at the top as he attempted to pop the cork.

In his haze, Mavid had been watching this as well from behind Jareth and now started to laugh really loudly at his friend.

Jareth turned the bottle and with a loud POP the cork flew out and missed Mavid's shoulder by mere inches. He didn't seem to even notice, though, still fighting to get a hold of himself.

As Jareth poured the wine for the pixies, Sarah looked down to Toby, who was stirring in her arms from the pop of the cork coupled with Mavid's laughter. Sarah leaned in closer and tried to soothe him back into his nap, not wanting him to see this even if _she_ had to, but when he looked up at her with wide eyes she knew it was no good. He was up.

Sarah looked up to Jareth for help, but remembered belatedly that he wouldn't be any. He thought it was 'perfectly natural'. With a little luck he was going to end up turning her precious Toby into some sort of sexual deviant or something!

What if Toby started running around the room like he had been earlier with Mavid's preparations? Oh God, what if he thought they were playing and tried to join?! Would Jareth stop him then, or even allow her to? Surely… but who really knew?

As if on cue Toby started to fuss that he wanted down, but Sarah held tight. He twisted around a little and upon noticing that this was a new room that he hadn't explored yet, he started to really fuss and push against her.

Jareth noticed the commotion and came over to the couch she sat on, probably happy to be away from the pixies.

"He shouldn't be here for this Jareth," she hissed up at him, trying to get him to see reason. "He's too young to understand that he even needs to be quiet. He wants to run around."

Jareth reached out and Sarah almost pulled back from him, but forced herself to allow him to take Toby from her arms as Toby started to cry. Jareth bounced him against his hip, but it didn't seem to sooth him at all. Toby was a little more than cranky right now and a bounce against the hip wasn't cutting it. "It's good luck to have a baby present during a breeding," Jareth told her, for the first time explaining why Toby had to be here… even though it was a totally weak superstition. "I'll take him out of the room till he calms down," Jareth sighed as Toby racked up an even louder set of screams.

"Can't I please do that?" Sarah pleaded, wanting very much the chance to spend the majority of this thing out in the hall with Toby.

"If I thought there was a chance you would come back once he was settled than perhaps," Jareth scowled at her. "Stay here and make nice. Drink some wine if you have to."

Sarah crossed her arms over her chest. "Are you going to pour it for me?" she asked bitterly just to get back at him for stealing this chance from her. She couldn't help herself.

The look Jareth gave her told her she would pay for that later. Sarah refused to allow herself to flinch at all as he leaned down, holding Toby securely in his arms as he stiffly brought his lips against her cheek. Sarah shuddered as he did so, almost scared that in a moment he would sink his teeth into her skin and tear it off her very face. "I'll be back." he simply said, standing up and making his apologies to his guests as Toby continued to sob. Sarah watched him go as he left the room and wished that it was her instead.

"There really is something so off-putting about babies," Queen Olay commented, earning her sour looks from both faes in the room despite their drugged stupors. Even Aboris rolled his eyes as he stood back near the door. Sarah supposed he was going to have to watch this too. "They are entirely needy." Olay turned to her attendant. "It's a good thing the deal is for Jareth to take possession as soon as it's born should this breeding take."

"There's money in this even if it doesn't," Craw reminded her, taking another drink from his wine as he sat down on the opposite couch.

Olay nodded her head and Sarah wished more than anything that those two wouldn't speak anymore tonight.

Mavid groaned as though he was in pain and all eyes turned to him. Sarah could see that he was starting to sport a good-sized tent underneath his robe. She tried not to think about what it looked like underneath the cloth but she _had_ seen it after all. Before when Mavid had been getting ready it was impossible not to see (especially since she hadn't been allowed to look away). Although it had been flaccid at the time she had still automatically compared it to Jareth's, even though the only main difference she had seen was that the fine hairs he had had around it were black whereas Jareth's were a sandy brown.

Sarah could feel the heat on her face in response to all this and just wished the day would be over now.

Aboris ducked out of the room then, probably to fetch Jareth, and Sarah wrapped her arms around herself and tried to numb her mind a bit. It was hard to do with those two stupid pixies making more of their oh-so-useful comments.

"Hmmm, I suppose we are all confined to work with the tools we are given but I do hope that that's enough to get the job done," King Craw drawled and Sarah glanced over to see him leering at Mavid.

Queen Olay laughed and playfully struck her husband's shoulder. "You're just jealous you can't be out there for this."

"I've been in Linra a number of times," Craw smirked arrogantly.

"I meant jealous _of_ Linra," Olay snickered back.

Craw laughed at that as well and Sarah couldn't help but feel mildly surprised and greatly annoyed when he reached over and shoved his wife's shoulder, causing her to fall sideways on the couch next to him before she pushed him back, spilling much of her wine all over the couch and floor in the process and not seeming to care at all. _This was how children acted_ , Sarah thought to herself as she watched. She almost wondered if she disliked being in the room with _them_ more than she did anything else.

The door opened to the room once more and both the pixies quieted down a little bit as Jareth came back in, neither Toby nor Aboris with him.

Jareth said nothing and looked at no one as he moved over to Sarah, sitting down on the seat next to her. He settled into the seat next to a rather confused and concerned Sarah, only then looking up to Mavid, who was now hunching over slightly with his hands on his thighs and a sheen of sweat already forming across his brow. "Ready?"

Mavid simply nodded his head, his whole stance rigid and his eyes glued to the floor in front of him like he was trying to keep himself in check.

Sarah felt like her face was on fire when Linra untied her robe, her actions slow and displaced as though she was only vaguely aware of what was even going on. The look on her face only confirmed how drugged she really was. Sarah just hoped that this was something she had agreed to like Tallia had. With how the fae all seemed to view babies she supposed it was entirely possible.

As the black robe Linra wore slipped open Sarah looked over to Jareth, wanting to demand to know where Toby was and at the same time just thankful that he wasn't here in the room any longer.

"You should dance for him too, Linra," Olay laughed as she drank more of her wine. "Dance the way Craw likes for you to."

Sarah was almost willing to drop to her knees in thanks when Jareth wordlessly and quickly handed over a glass of wine to her. What she really felt she needed was one of those calming shots that Mavid had been given. Sarah raised her wine to her lips and even though she didn't care for the taste of this one too much, she still downed it in only a couple precious gulps.

She took a deep breath before leaning over to Jareth. "Where is Toby?" she asked him, hoping he wouldn't snap at her for talking to him at all.

She was pleased when he didn't, not even bothering to turn his head to her as he whispered back. "Out in the hall with Aboris. He's fussing too much to be in the room, but I still want him close by."

"I'm glad he's not in here for this," Sarah informed him, still wanting to make herself very clear on that point.

Jareth gave her a sideways glare from the corner of his eyes. "I find myself growing more tired of your opinions every day," he warned her darkly.

 _As if you ever cared about my opinions_ , she thought bitterly to herself, sitting back in her seat and cradling her empty wine glass in her hands.

X

He had never before seen anyone look as uncomfortable and at the same time as transfixed Sarah did right now next to him. Her whole body was rigid and she was strangling the stem of her wineglass in her hand as she watched the mating taking place right in front of them on the floor with a completely red face. On his other side the pixies were well liquored up and giggling every now and then as they too watched. Craw's hands had already found ways under Olay's dress to fondle her a bit and it was obvious they were both enjoying the show.

Jareth looked back from them out to the cushions and blankets strewn about the area. In the middle of them all the mating was just about at its climax judging from the feral sounds tumbling out from the back of Mavid's throat and the way he was driving himself into Linra. She was moaning rhythmically from where he held her down on the floor beneath him, her legs wrapped around him to pull him in closer and Jareth could see the sweat glistening on Mavid's skin as he buried his head against the female's neck, no doubt concentrating on getting the job done rather than allowing himself to remember what was even happening around him.

Jareth could feel touches of sweat on his own neck and back as he watched and he couldn't help but feel a little hot and bothered, and even slightly aroused. He crossed his ankle over his knee to give himself a little room since he couldn't help his reaction.

He watched and waited as Mavid's groans built up to a plateau… only for his friend to shake his head as he seemed to run into some sort of brick wall and try to regain his rhythm.

When it happened a second time Jareth began to grow nervous and the others had taken notice of it to, the pixie's slowing down in their grope-fest but not altogether stopping as they watched to see what would happen. This was the problem often run into with high-pressured breeding, being that even with the drugs forcing a male to attention many times the mere burden of the situation would be enough to overcome the fact and stop the ceremony from being completed. That would often combine with the fact that the longer these things took the more both the calming and aphrodisiac qualities of the drugs administered would wear off.

Jareth found himself actually biting his lip when Mavid let out a frustrated growl and attempted once more to regain his rhythm. This wasn't going to work… not tonight. That was certain. Jareth fought down the bitter disappointment trying to grow in his chest and let out a soft sigh in hopes that Mavid wouldn't hear him do so.

Craw and Olay seemed to pick up on this too and had stopped their ministrations now to watch how this played out. Sarah seemed a little worried about what was happening now too and even Linra had stopped making noises as she stared up at Mavid.

Jareth waited without a word for Mavid to give up the battle he was losing with himself, his mind no doubt having already started over processing and over thinking the situation to the point that would render him useless for any kind of copulation for the night. Mavid stubbornly let out another growl and tried again to control himself, but again lost his momentum quickly, leaving him on all fours over the female as his body heaved with his panting.

Jareth let out another sigh and licked his lips, trying to think of something he could say. "Mavid-

"No!" Mavid shouted back at him over his shoulder, fury and shame thick in his voice. "I'm not done! I can still finish," he insisted, surprisingly sounding sure of himself despite evidence to the contrary. Linra continued to lay beneath him, obviously just waiting for him to move off her, but not about to say anything about it till he was ready.

Craw whispered something to Olay that made her smirk, but Jareth ignored them both as he focused on his friend. "Mavid it's fine. Leave it be for tonight and we can try again another time."

Despite Jareth's calm manner about the situation that was honestly all too common with this tradition, he still recognized it when the first sparks of real anger showed up in Mavid's deep blue eyes and he knew the male was starting to get riled up.

"I said I can finish…" Mavid panted again. "I just need… something…"

Jareth didn't know really what to say and didn't have the heart to try to stop him again when Mavid turned back to the female beneath him and started to try again. This time as he neared his peak Linra started moaning too and even whining a little and Jareth could see the strain in Mavid's hands that was a sign he was squeezing her legs about as hard as he could. The drugs kept Linra from really feeling the pain as Mavid drilled into her hard. Jareth held his breath as he neared his release again… but lost it in a gasp along with everyone else when Mavid suddenly slapped the female across the face without any warning, the sound echoing around the room followed by Linra's surprised shriek and before Jareth could even fully stand up from his seat to intervene Mavid's body convulsed with his orgasm and he bellowed before collapsing backward onto the floor; panting to try and catch his breath.

Jareth could only stand there and stare as the female next to Mavid moaned over her pain as she clutched her hand to her cheek where she had been slapped.

Jareth had to hold himself back when Mavid simply gave him a lazy smirk from where he lay on the floor.

"What a surprise finish," Queen Olay laughed. "I've certainly never seen that happen during a breeding before."

"Is she alright then?" Craw asked, sounding only mildly interested in the matter of his own attendant.

Jareth ignored his own for the moment and turned to the sniveling female, moving her hand from her face so he could see. It would leave a mark, but not a permanent one. She refused to meet his eyes, keeping hers lowered to the ground. She would recover just fine, and she had already quieted under his touch.

"She's fine," Jareth sighed, straightening up and turning back to Craw. "I apologize for that."

"I'm sure you feel sorry enough to throw in a little extra compensation," Craw simply shrugged, turning the situation for his own profit without remorse.

Jareth bit the inside of his cheek to keep from saying what he really wanted to. "Of course."

He looked back at Linra from the corner of his eye, hoping and at the same time sure that she didn't regret volunteering herself despite the risks and Mavid's rough handling. He knew exactly why she had practically begged both her owners and himself to allow her to be of service in this. If she successfully delivered a child she would get a cut of the sum of money being paid to her owners. With it she could get out of their service and make a start for herself elsewhere.

Jareth's attention was pulled away when Sarah quickly stood up from the couch, the glare she gave him stating very plainly that she blamed him for what had just happened. Jareth couldn't help himself from glaring back at her for being so unfair. As if he had known Mavid would try something like that. As though he was planning to let it go! He could only stand his ground and watch, however, as Sarah turned and stormed out of the room, slamming the door shut as hard as she could behind her.

Over on the couch Olay tsk-tsked. "My, she certainly has no manners."

X

"Will you please just leave!?" Sarah hissed, turning around to glare at Jareth without fear.

"And leave you with my son unguarded? Do not jest woman," he hissed back.

It had been days since they had started acting this way towards each other, and there were still no signs of either of them giving in. Jareth was still cross with her for giving Toby a haircut, and Sarah was still feeling unforgiving of having bared witness to the breeding. She wanted to slap him across the face whenever she thought about it. And the worst part was that he had intended to have Toby there too! Just for superstitious luck!

If she hadn't said anything and Toby had seen what she had been forced to… she didn't even want to think of it for how angry it made her. She took only meager satisfaction in the way Mavid had been walking around for the past two days with bandages wrapped around his hands. She didn't know what exactly had happened, but now and then she would still see blood staining them around his knuckles between changes and he was very careful whenever he had to move his hands because of his mysterious injuries. When she had worked up the curiosity to ask about them to Jareth he had only snapped at her that if it were her business he would have told her about it. She hadn't bothered to ask again after that, figuring that it maybe had something to do with him hitting that poor female he mated with.

"You act as though I poisoned him or something!" Sarah hissed back, not having had a single minute alone with Toby since the night she cut his hair.

"Like it's beyond you to try poisoning others," Jareth snapped at her.

Sarah looked down at Toby, who was staring up at the corner of his crib where his father stood with wide eyes that took everything in as he sucked on his pacifier. Sarah tried to calm herself so she didn't start shouting in front of him. There was no reason for him to see something like that. "Can we do this later?" she asked, trying to keep hostility from her tone, "I want to say good night to Toby."

"Then do so," Jareth growled, his patience spent as he crossed his arms over his chest and plopped down to watch her from the rocking chair nearby. She had wanted him to leave the room. It had been a couple nights now since she had told Toby any more tales about the Aboveground, not feeling brave enough to try it in front of Jareth or Mavid. She didn't know if she would get in trouble for doing so at all, but it seemed like she got in trouble for everything she did. Why would something like this be any different?

"Can I tell him a bedtime story?" she made herself ask. She wanted to do it, and figured maybe if she asked Jareth wouldn't fuss about it later.

Jareth raised a brow at her question and she wondered if he thought it a strange request or just stupid. The only indication he gave to her of it possibly being either was the nod of his head. "Just keep it short, he should be asleep by now."

Sarah tried to think of something she could tell Toby, something about the Aboveground that Jareth wouldn't get up in arms over. Something she didn't mind him overhearing. That left out anything about her father or friends. She didn't feel like sharing cherished personal experiences while the goblin king scowled at her from a rocking chair.

Something general then, like last time. "Toby, do you want to hear something about the Aboveground?" she cooed down at him. His round eyes tore away from his father to her and she had his attention now as he continued to suck on his pacifier. Sarah glanced at Jareth out of the corner of her eye and found she had his attention too, his expression unreadable and his posture tense like he would jump up at any moment.

Sarah tried her best to ignore his father and smiled down at Toby. "I could tell you about a holiday perhaps," she thought a minute. "I'll tell you about Christmas, you would have liked Christmas. Kids always do." Sarah tried to keep it short, since Toby probably didn't really understand anything she was talking about anyway there was no need for a lot of detail, but she did tell him about December and both the story her mom had told her as a child about Jesus being born and the stories her father had told her about Santa Clause. She didn't talk about any of her own experiences in front of Jareth though, who kept an eyebrow raised haughtily the entire time.

Sarah wrapped it up after Toby's eyes had drifted shut and kissed the tips of her fingers before resting them against his cheek.

Jareth got up from his chair and kissed his own fingers to do the same, escorting Sarah out of the room without a word once they were sure Toby wasn't going to start howling at any moment.

Once out in the hall Sarah crossed her arms over her chest and let her annoyances with Jareth come back to her, not bothering to wait for him as she went across the hall and slipped into her room, closing her door behind her. She had slept here on her own for the past few nights, with no disagreements from Jareth whatsoever. So she was actually surprised when her door opened back up and Jareth came in after her. She instinctively backed away from him but he didn't advance on her.

He did pause when he entered her room though, probably noticing that it was a little chilled. The nights had been getting much colder and Sarah wouldn't be surprised if it were to snow, but so far there had been none. "I want you to share my bed tonight," he simply told her.

Sarah frowned back at him, keeping her arms crossed both for the warmth and to look resistant now. "Why?"

"It's been getting very cold, I'm sure you've noticed. Nothing keeps my bed warm like a female." There was no lust in his eyes, and Sarah figured he was probably saying those things just to make her all indignant at his order; just to push her buttons because he could.

"No."

"Yes."

"No!" Sarah seethed, fighting her urge to stomp her foot.

Jareth's eyes narrowed at that. "You have been in my ill-favor for a while now, but you are trying tirelessly to shift yourself onto my bad-side which is a place you really don't want to find yourself," Jareth warned her, his tone much colder than the air outside the castle walls could ever be.

"You can't just order me around like that!" Sarah insisted, only to flinch when Jareth took a couple steps closer to her in a fit.

"Why not?!" he demanded, his anger raising his voice slightly. "I do so with everyone and they _all_ listen. I have given you no reason at any time to think that you are above that just because you are my wife. Yet still you defy me and defy me! You act as though I tell you what to do just so I can lord my power over you but you _must_ know that that isn't the case. I always have a reason behind any order I give you, but still you defy them and the only reason I can think of as to why you would see sense in that is if you actually _did_ enjoy my punishments deep down!"

"You do lord your power over me!" Sarah snarled back, not wanting to back down on this. "There is no reason you have told me that would justify the fit you have been throwing for days over Toby's haircut. It will grow back for crying out loud!"

"It's not the _haircut_ ; it's the haircut, and the cursing, and the talking back, and the disregard for my warnings, and the… the shoes… it is every chance you get taking the opportunity to do the exact opposite of what you should do. What I've _told_ you to do."

"If you have a reason for telling me not to do something, then why don't you tell me what it is?" Sarah demanded, her anger causing her face to flush as she gripped her hands into fists. "If there are reasons for me not to do things then fine, tell me why it was so horrible of me to cut Toby's hair."

"I shouldn't have to explain anything to you," he snarled back, his own fists clenching by his sides as Sarah threw her hands up in frustration at his answer and dropped down to sit on the side of her bed, her arms re-crossing over her chest. "That I give you an order should be sufficient enough."

"It isn't!" she shouted at him now, lowering her voice at the warning glare he shot her. "I don't trust you enough to follow you blindly Jareth, I might need reasons explained to me now and then. I don't know this world like you do, not all its dangers are clear to me. I don't fear consequences I have no knowledge of… I can't." She thought of a way to better explain it. "If Toby were to try to crawl into one of the bazillion fireplaces in this place because he didn't know any better would you try to stop him and let him know why he shouldn't try it again? Or would you sit back and watch and then yell at him for burning himself? Because that is what you're doing to _me_ Jareth! You are watching me burn myself over and over and just stand there and insist that I don't need to know the reason why. You lead me blindly into everything! I would have never known a thing about the breeding if Tallia hadn't told me her own experience! Isn't it like your job as my husband to help me figure that kind of thing out?! You said before you wanted to provide me with protection, but a lot of protection can come from just letting me know why to watch out for something. You never do, though! You never explain anything to me! If it's anyone's fault I keep getting in trouble it's **yours**!"

Sarah was left panting at the end of her tirade and even though towards the very end she had been shouting, Jareth had not given her any more warning looks or tried to shush her in any way surprisingly. He was still glaring at her, but the anger had softened slightly as he stared back at her, his hands clenching hard into fists.

Sarah watched as his hands suddenly went limp at his sides and he breathed out like some of the fight had just left him. He must have known she was right at least on some level. Sarah considered that a lot of progress in her favor. Certainly she couldn't remember it ever happening before. Sarah took the chance given to her to continue on, no longer shouting at him even though she was still plenty ticked off. "Like back with the shoes, I didn't know you were worried about me stepping on anything and getting hurt. If that had crossed my mind I wouldn't have kicked them off to go walking around. I haven't done so since you told me that," Sarah pointed out.

Jareth was silent for a time, then eventually let out another breath like a balloon deflating. He paced over to the wall her bed was pushed up against and leaned his arm against it, not meeting her eyes as he looked out her window, even though it was dark outside. After a while of him not responding at all she wondered if he knew she was even still in the room. Sarah shifted around to face the foot of her bed where he stood, and that was when he answered her.

"We worry about curses," he told her, still not looking at her.

"Beg pardon?"

"That's why we don't cut our hair often in the Underground. Tufts of hair can be used in curses, the more of it the better," Jareth expanded. "Have you ever seen any of the fae with short hair? Mavid keeps his short in back for his brand to be visible, but his front locks are even all the way down to his chest. Haircuts are rare and should only ever be done by someone you can absolutely trust to burn the tufts safely and completely. A bad style is the least of our worries in the Underground for these things. Females almost never bother to cut their hair at all."

She had never thought of that, but at the same time there had been no real reason for her to. Sarah could hardly believe he had conceded to her in sharing this information. Lord forbid he ever admit he had been wrong, or that she was right, but this was the closest she felt she would get towards that, and a lot more than she ever expected to get out of this. "Who cuts your hair?" she asked, wondering who he would trust that much.

Jareth's cheeks pinked slightly. "My mother, she always has cut my hair… and Mavid's. She used to cut my father's too, but doesn't anymore."

Sarah raised a brow at that and Jareth turned to her with a ghost of a smirk on his lips now. "Would you trust her not to curse you if you treated her as my father did? Did you notice it was long all over? We are vulnerable to any number of nasty fates if the wrong being gets hold of our hair."

"I never thought there was any significance to the hairstyles down here honestly," Sarah admitted. "In my world a haircut is just another errand you do… like taking out the trash. There is no life-threatening risk to it."

Jareth's face turned serious again. "I suppose I can see why you wouldn't stop to consider it then."

Wow, for him that was definitely progress. He had actually just cut her some slack!

"You are sure you burned all the hair you cut from his head then?" he asked her.

"… yes… mostly," Sarah muttered, wishing very much for a wall to suddenly appear between them at that moment.

Jareth's face suddenly turned hard again. "Mostly?"

She knew better than to try lying, even though that was her first instinct when he got that look in his eyes. He would see through her though and then it would only be worse. She still wanted to back away from him now though with how he was glaring at her and what she now understood had been less than a great and harmless idea. "I saved a lock," she admitted slowly, like she was dragging the truth out of herself.

Jareth shook his head at her. "Another Aboveground tradition? It's too dangerous for that down here Sarah. You'll have to burn it."

"I… I don't have it," Sarah forced out.

Jareth turned his full attention on her then and he clenched his hands into fists again. "What?"

Sarah felt like she was watching the little progress she had just seen circle the drain in front of her. "Jareth, please don't be mad. It's safe! I just didn't know it was as dangerous as all that."

"Where is it?" Jareth demanded, no room for argument allowed in his tone.

There was no reason not to say. "I gave it to Tallia, to remember him by."

"You stupid girl!" Jareth hissed, immediately heading towards the door.

"Where are you going?" Sarah made herself ask, worried about what he would do.

"You want me to explain things to you? Fine!" Jareth bellowed stomping back over to her. "I am going to go to Mavid's room and have him go out in the freezing cold in the middle of the night to find her and bring back the lock so I can witness it's destruction."

Sarah couldn't help but feel very guilty at the thought that it was her fault Mavid would be roused from his bed for this. "You won't have him hurt Tallia will you?! She tried to turn it down but I insisted. I didn't know it was that bad, and she would definitely protect it… certainly till tomorrow at least."

"I ought to send you out there in Mavid's place," Jareth growled at her, fury spread across his features as he went back over to her door. "Then you could explain to her why she needs to hand over your _gift_."

Sarah jumped up from her bed and rushed over to Jareth, grabbing his arm as he opened her door. "Jareth wait, don't allow Mavid to hurt her."

"If she hands it over there will obviously be no need of that," Jareth snarled at her, his fury returned to him at this point. "It's a simple matter of collecting what you never had a right to give away." Jareth paused in the doorway. "Just so this doesn't happen again, it's the same situation with finger and toenails, burn them when you cut them."

Sarah jumped when he slammed the door in her face.

X

Sarah found it very hard to sleep, huddled deep under the covers on her bed to avoid the nippy air in her drafty room. She was glad now that Toby's room wasn't bordered with an outside wall like hers was, after all his room had been comfortable enough. Sarah found herself waking up every now and then to the chill and would have to arrange any blankets that had slipped off her in her sleep. She looked up at the window and saw that it was starting to lighten up just the slightest bit in the night sky and she cursed into her blankets. She had hardly slept. She wondered if she should go into the nursery and make a spot for herself on the floor.

She had just about convinced herself of that plan when she heard the sound of wings and suddenly a barn owl was at her window, flapping its wings furiously against the glass pane and pecking at it with its beak like it wanted nothing more than to get inside. Sarah was surprised to say the least and scrambled out from under her covers and opened the window without a second thought, knowing who it was and nothing else.

Jareth swooped past her head and she quickly shut the window back up as a stiff breeze rolled over her torso, the shift of a nightgown she had worn offering her no comfort against it.

Once the window was locked she turned to see Jareth had already turned back from his owl form, his body clad in his black armor as he breathed onto his hands to warm them as his body shivered slightly. Even in the dark Sarah could see that much. "What are you doing?" she asked him, wondering if just maybe she was dreaming.

"I went with Mavid and cleaned up your little mess for you," he snapped, giving her an inclination that she in fact was awake and this wasn't just some dream of hers. He was only ever mean to her in real life.

"You got the lock?" she found herself asking in disbelief.

Jareth sneered over at her. "Of course, and at this very moment it is nothing more than ash in the fireplace. You should probably apologize to Mavid tomorrow for this."

Sarah ignored that for the moment, even though he could have been right about that. "Is Tallia alright?"

"I thought I told you that you were to sleep in _my_ bed tonight," Jareth growled at her, "And she's fine."

Sarah frowned back at him, fighting off a yawn despite herself she was still too tired to get really riled up with him, whereas the cold seemed to have invigorated Jareth. "I didn't think that still applied when you stormed off and slammed the door in my face."

Jareth reached out to take her arm and actually jumped back from surprise when Sarah let out a scream right away.

She hadn't meant to, and he hadn't hurt her or anything, but she had just been so surprised. Jareth was the picture of surprise himself as he stared down at her in confusion. "Your hands are freezing!" Sarah rebuked him.

"I wonder why," he drawled, grabbing her once more and pulling her from the bed onto her feet. "It could be because you caused a risk to our son's wellbeing and I had to see to it before the chance of danger could occur."

Sarah tried to touch him as little as possible, his icy hand digging into her arm firmly as he pulled her with him into his own room. He was cold all over and his room was only a little more comfortable than Sarah's own. He tossed a crystal he summoned up at the wall and Sarah watched as the bricks parted quickly and a fireplace appeared out of nowhere to catch it rather than allowing it to hit against the wall. A fire instantly roared to life.

When Jareth let her arm go her desire to return to sleep and the leave the cold coaxed Sarah into his bed faster than any kind of invitation ever could of and she was quick to cuddle under his blankets, waiting for her body heat to warm them as Jareth stripped out of his armor quickly.

Sarah watched with half interest as he removed the shell-like encasing from his body and just as quickly joined her under the covers, immediately reaching out for her. His whole body was still cold and Sarah protested as he attempted to wrap himself around her. "You're cold!" she whined again.

"Which is your fault anyway; and you are warm," he gasped as he shivered once more, embracing her even harder to himself.

Sarah bit her lip to not cry out in protest when his especially cold hands gripped at her bottom and moved to her thigh, pulling her leg up and over his own so his hips were flush up against hers. He then moved her arm in the same way and once the line of her body was completely against his own colder one he nuzzled his face between hers and the pillows and let out one shuddering breath before his body relaxed all over. Sarah didn't pull back, doubted that she even could, and rubbed her hand up and down his cold back absentmindedly to help him regain his slowly-returning warmth.

"Jareth, please tell me what happened before you go to sleep. Is Tallia ok?" she asked, fighting against the sleep pulling at her.

Jareth simply grunted against her cheek. She gave his shoulder a light shake. "Yes," he snapped, his voice heavy with exhaustion. "We found her cottage outside the Devine City and she was understanding about it. Said she warned you of curses when you gave it to her," he said, and Sarah jumped when his fingers pinched her thigh in reprimand. "We burned it there, strand by strand to be sure. Mavid stayed the night and I flew back. Now let me sleep," he whined.

Sarah rolled her eyes but she couldn't recall ever hearing him whine before. Given the other firsts tonight she wondered if maybe this wasn't her Jareth. She moved her nose to his cheek and breathed in softly, relaxing against the smell of leather and autumn spices and testosterone. It certainly smelled like Jareth.

He surprised her before she could pull away when he turned his head to kiss her lips softly before nuzzling back against the pillow to seek out sleep.

After that sleep reclaimed her quickly.

X

"You've been doing well then? Truly?"

"Actually… yes. It's strange, but I have to say it's been a lot better than I expected things to be," Sarah nodded, holding her teacup politely rather than drinking out of it. She didn't really like the taste of tea, never had.

Jareth's mother raised an eyebrow. She seemed equally surprised. "Well, perhaps something you said to him resonated. I know for a fact that's not always an easy achievement when it comes to my son, impossible if he has his mind set on something already."

That morning Jareth had informed Sarah that his mother was requesting a visit from her. 'Girl time or something silly like that,' he had said with a roll of his eyes. 'Would that interest you?' After getting over the shock that he had asked her if she wanted to or not, Sarah had agreed, wanting to get out of the castle for a couple hours very much. Aside from the breeding it had been ages since she had been allowed to step foot outside the castle walls, and since she had given away their playing cards to the imp there was only so many new conversations to have with Clora and Ishapelle. Especially since nothing new ever happened to any of them within the castle. Those two were lucky though, they would be going back to their families for several nights to visit them in only a matter of days.

"Do you think it will last? This good mood of his?" Kaleen asked, setting down her own cup on the little table between them. Sarah couldn't help but watch the incredibly poised and delicate way she did so.

The punishment she had been expecting never came, or at least it hadn't yet. After Jareth had spent half the night fixing her mistake with the lock of hair she had expected one certainly, but the next day the only thing that had happened was that Jareth had kept her in bed with him until well past mid-day while he caught up on his sleep.

Sarah had spent much of her time that day worrying her lip between her teeth about it, but had more common sense than to ask him about it just in case it prompted him to actually punish her. When he had woken up, however, he had simply bid her good morning and climbed out of bed to get dressed and start his day, mumbling about being hungry. During supper she had had to apologize to Mavid for her mistake, and under Jareth's gentle pushing she had also thanked him for taking care of it for her. Even though he had been scowling at her the whole time he had still shrugged and accepted her apology and thanks with as much enthusiasm as she had offered them. That had been the most distasteful thing she had had to undergo the whole day and by comparison giving Mavid an apology when he kind of deserved one wasn't bad at all.

Jareth's newfound civility even lasted throughout the night and although he did require she sleep with him again for the cold, he didn't force her to do anything else that night, which raised back her suspicions that maybe this wasn't really Jareth. Maybe someone had cursed him into being civil or something. Whatever it was though, she wasn't going to spoil it by asking him why he was acting this way.

"I wouldn't expect so," she sighed. She doubted it was possible that something she said to him the other night actually got through to him, and knew it was impossible that this would be a permanent change, but she supposed she should enjoy his tranquil mood while it lasted and not rock the boat.

Kaleen nodded her head. "I know this isn't what you are wanting to hear, but that's a good stance to take. Sometimes Jareth can take after his father more than I would care for him to, and I would advise that if he is treating you fairly to not put stock that it will be an ever-lasting change. Just try not to be the cause of its end."

Sarah looked down at her cup resting in her hands, knowing that the queen was right. She tended to forget just how aware Kaleen probably was of what she was going through. "Is the king ever that way with you?" she asked before she could think not to.

A very tired look flashed over the queen's face for half an instant before she regained her nonchalant composure. "You can refer to him as Hamold darling, he is your father-in-law after all," she pointed this out with a slight scowl directed at Sarah, as if to get her hint across. She picked up her tea again before answering that—even though she had just discarded the little cup—and took a long drink. "I know you haven't seen much of him, but honestly Hamold can be just as kind as he can be cruel. I've never known a male more attentive than Hamold, when he wants to be. With as long as he and I have been joined there have been long periods of both the awful and the wonderful, and little stints of both in between."

Sarah let out a little sigh. "It's just not fair," she moaned, ignoring the annoyed look the queen cast her, "It's not right that our relationship is decided based on his moods and how he feels like treating me. I feel like I have no say in anything. When Mavid went through his mating Jareth would have had Toby in the room with them if not for me."

"More tea?" Kaleen asked, refilling her own cup. "A child is often present at such an event, granted usually a younger one. Any word on how it went?"

That was another thing bothering and worrying her. "I haven't heard anything."

The queens interest was piqued enough by this subject that Sarah was willing to let it be and Kaleen looked a little excited as she let out a sigh. "Oh I do hope so, Jareth should know any day now. It would be so exciting to have another baby in just a matter of fifty nights or so! And Little Jareth would have a new companion for the better part of his life. It makes me think about when Jareth and Mavid were children. Between us, Jareth _wasn't_ the most attractive looking child. Mavid was a beautiful one though, which was mainly why I picked him out actually. Oh, but they both grew up wonderfully though. Little Jareth is certainly a fine-featured boy. It's a pity you didn't bring him along."

Sarah only heard every other word of that because her mind caught on something in the middle. "Fifty nights?"

Kaleen nodded her head. "You probably don't know this, being human and all, but fae women are only pregnant for about sixty nights. The rate the baby develops is very fast and as such is extremely hard on the females. Getting to that stage is really only half the battle. One out of four pregnancies end in death for one or both between the babe and the female."

Sarah tried very hard not to let her mouth drop. A pregnancy amongst the fae lasted only about two months?! Sarah tried to take another drink of her tea as her head spun. There could be a baby in their care in as little as all that? Despite the beneficial-sounding short time span she was sure that it would indeed be a traumatic experience on a body to grow a fetus in two months' time to the point of birth. She just couldn't get her head wrapped around it. Nine months for a human to develop and it took a fae two!

"You're nervous," the queen stated, noticing the death grip Sarah held her teacup in. "Never be nervous about having a baby, Sarah, they are too wonderful for that. When I had Jareth it was the most wonderful day of my life, and although I did not give birth to Mavid myself, I cared for him as though I had. Sometimes I wish I could order them both to move back into this castle with me," she confessed, a wistful look on her face.

It was almost as hard for Sarah to comprehend that as the lengths of pregnancies were. She just had a hard time imagining that once both Jareth and Mavid were children, and that they had the queen acting as a doting mother.

At Sarah's silence Kaleen set down her cup, "Would you care to see some pictures from then?" she asked, as if instinctively knowing what Sarah was thinking.

Sarah almost wanted to laugh. Was this the part where she rifled through old snapshots of her husband with his mother? It seemed even more absurd. "Um…" was all she got out before the queen was on her feet, turning her back on Sarah in a manner that suggested that she follow. Sarah got up for lack of another option and followed the queen out of the lounging room and down the cold stone hallways of the elegant Devine Castle, pulling her shawl tighter around her shoulders. They didn't go far, merely down the hall and Sarah followed the queen to a bronze-colored door with a carving of a grand tree on it.

"This is our portrait room," the queen said before leading the way in. "It's been a while since I was in here."

Sarah stepped into the room behind the queen and it was like nothing she had expected (though she probably should have). The room was massive and there were so many popup walls and pedestals inside that it was hard to gauge just how big it was from where she stood. She could see that some of the walls were empty, yet to be filled, but for the most part huge ornate frames taller and wider than she was hung on the walls with the bottoms of their frames touching the floor. Not one of the frames had a picture in them though. Well that was only half true, they all had the same picture on them… though it was only a grey sheet of what looked like silk hanging behind the frame. It reminded her a little of the mirror panting that took up the hall outside of her bedroom.

Kaleen looped Sarah's arm in hers and led her through the room, passing many of the picture-less frames without giving them a second glance. "This room chronicles much of our family's history; some of the greatest rulers from Hamold's side of the family are found in here." Sarah gave no response, waiting to see at least one frame with a picture in it and trying to read some of the plated descriptions that hung next to them on the walls. The words on those were not in a language she knew of however. Kaleen led her to one of the pop up walls sitting in the middle of the room, one of the grand frames taking up space on the front. There was a little pedestal sitting next to it, holding a little green box with silver trimthat looked very old.

"Are you familiar with picture viewing here?" Kaleen asked her.

Sarah had no clue what she could mean and shook her head. Was she supposed to relax her eyes and stare at the silk till she saw the sailboat?

"We're going to just lean out heads in and look at the memory, this one is my own," the queen said. "Keep one hand on the frame and make sure you don't walk in all the way. Feet out here dear. It's all too easy to get lost in the past."

Sarah still felt confused and when Jareth's mother gripped the side of the frame she followed suit on her side, watching with interest as Kaleen leaned in till her nose was touching the silk, and then in further as the silk seemed to turn to liquid and part around her face, almost touching her ears before the queen stopped leaning in and just stood there, her face inside the silk. Sarah wondered for a minute if maybe she shouldn't, but her curiosity pulled hard at her and she planted her feet and leaned forward, the cloth feeling cold as it parted and formed around her face with ease. When she felt it touch her ears she stopped, but wanted to move further in almost on some unknown instinct. Her face was cold and it felt like being under water, making her afraid that she wouldn't be able to breathe. Sarah forced her eyes open and found it easy to start breathing right away when she found that although she wasn't moving her own self at all, her view was shifting all over the halls of the Devine Castle as if she were hurrying through them and every so often glancing at this or that along the way. She could hear heavy breathing coming from her but she knew she was breathing normally despite the way her own heart was fluttering at all this.

Her view of the hall suddenly spun down and Sarah could only watch through whatever vessel she was in to see that she was ornately dressed in a light blue gown, with ringlets of her long golden hair falling into her view even though she wore them up. There was also a baby safely cradled against her as she hurried along the hall, wrapped up in her arms better than its white swaddling cloth.

Sarah remembered now what Kaleen had said, that this was her memory, Sarah was seeing it from her point of view. So Kaleen was hurrying down the hall, the little sleeping baby with light blonde hair had to be Jareth. It felt so weird, feeling almost as though she were holding her infant husband even though she couldn't feel him at all, but merely see him in Kaleen's arms. Kaleen was practically out of breath when she turned down one hall and stopped in her tracks just as Hamold and Erib were coming into one of the doorways. Erib led the way, looking the exact same as he did today, but with a few less wrinkles around the corners of his lips and his hair was not white, but a silvery blonde. He stepped aside to let Hamold through and Sarah could hardly recognize him. Hamold's hair was shorter, hanging only to his shoulders, whereas now it was down his mid-back. He was not wearing one of his imposing cloaks, but instead wore body armor that was much like what Jareth would sometimes don. The biggest change though was that he was smiling; a real and pure smile of happiness as he carried a very young toddler with black hair on his hip.

"This is the one you asked me for, correct? The one that old peasant woman approached you about making Jareth's attendant?" Hamold asked, still smiling, as he ruffled the little boy's black curls. Sarah couldn't help but think that he looked so much like Toby did but for the shade of his hair that it was uncanny.

"You know he is," Kaleen laughed with joy and Sarah was pulled along as Kaleen approached for a better look. The little boy stared back at her like he didn't know what to think, clinging to Hamold. "Hello, little sweetheart," she cooed. "I'm going to make sure you are very happy here with us, because we are happy to have you here." She spoke to Hamold then. "Does he have a name?"

"His mother and father refused to tell me if he did. Said he wouldn't know it anyway so we can choose it for him, being as he's still so young."

"Here Erib, take Jareth from me for a moment."

Jareth was passed over into Erib's arms carefully, his little eyes fluttering awake in the process of him being moved around and Sarah saw that even at that age they were mismatched. Kaleen held out her arms but did not take the dark-haired toddler from Hamold till he reached out his little hand to her. She brought him onto her own hip then and this time he returned her smile as she cooed more 'hellos' to him. "I get to name him then," she proclaimed, "You got to choose Jareth's name after all even though it was I who delivered him."

Hamold laughed sweetly at that and it sent a chill down Sarah's spine from outside the memory because there was only sweetness in it, so very unlike anything she had ever heard. "That will work fine seeing as how this time it was I who delivered him unto you."

Sarah almost flinched out of the memory altogether when Hamold leaned in and kissed her– er, Kaleen's lips, lightly. It was weird to see him looking right at her so adoringly as he reached out to touch Kaleen's chin. "Whatever my queen wants," he smiled, this time kissing her forehead.

"I'll name him Mavid, after my departed brother," Kaleen stated turning back to Mavid, who was still smiling in her arms. "You like that name, don't you little Mavid?"

Everything in the memory suddenly melted away and warped itself till Sarah was no longer seeing a hallway and babies, but instead was outside in a little field, looking on as two little boys who could only have been Jareth and Mavid ran around playing with each other. They looked like a couple of six year olds or so. It was starting to cloud over outside and Kaleen chuckled as the boys were both reaching up to the sky, moving their hands and proclaiming that each of them was the one controlling the weather even though they could do no such thing.

"Jareth, Mavid, we're going in soon," Kaleen warned them as Sarah looked on through her eyes.

Little Jareth turned around and Sarah stifled her laugh because Kaleen had been right, he hadn't been the most attractive child, lanky as all heck and a rash of freckles over his otherwise too pale face and arms. His hair looked wild and unruly in a hopeless kind of way, and his ears were too big for his head. He would obviously grow into it all but it was still highly amusing to see Jareth in such a way. "Mummy I don't want to go in!" he protested in a whiney voice.

Mavid turned then and Sarah could see that he had indeed been a beautiful child, his hair thick and long and silken around his face, his eyes a deeper blue than they were now. He was a little taller than Jareth was, although that wasn't the case anymore. Sarah watched with surprise when he reached out and suddenly shoved Jareth's back, pushing him to the ground. "Race you inside!" Mavid shouted as he took off with his head start. Little Jareth grumbled and whined some more but got up and ran after his companion.

"Mavid don't push!" Kaleen called after them as she got up from the ground. It was very slow going, though, and Sarah was shocked when she caught a glimpse of a very pregnant stomach when Kaleen looked down at herself before hurrying after the two children. When she reached them at the door waiting for her Mavid was rubbing it in that he had won and Jareth was in tears next to him. As soon as she was close Jareth clamped himself onto her dress skirts, "Mummy he cheated!"

"Yes he did Jareth," Kaleen confirmed, her gaze turning to Mavid, who lowered his head in shame. "Mavid, you know better than that. Now apologize."

Mavid hesitated.

"Would you like it better if Hamold told you to apologize?"

Mavid's face fell and he looked up at her with the most pitiful look a child could ever give. "I'm sorry mummy."

"Not to me."

He looked somehow even more pitiful as he turned to Jareth, who was hiding in her skirts still. "I'm sorry."

Jareth immediately ran out from her skirts, and although Kaleen was ready to be up in arms the second she saw Jareth shove Mavid to the ground, she didn't bother fighting it further when Mavid pulled him down with him and they were instantly laughing and shouting as they lightly tussled with each other. Already the best of friends once more.

The image melted away again and this time Sarah shut her eyes, helping herself also transition between the memories that played. This time when she opened them she was looking around a cozy little sitting room, a book in the lap of her vast skirts and the fireplace was the only thing giving any light in the room.

Sarah jumped as bad as Kaleen did when two male voices suddenly shouted in unison from right behind her. "Mum!"

Kaleen spun around quickly, dropping her book from her freight as she saw Jareth and Mavid standing behind her, Hamold standing just a little ways behind them. They both looked a lot closer to being teenagers now, growing into adulthood nicely. Mavid had at some point lost his curls and had started wearing his hair short in back, still looking thinner than he would become. Jareth had lost his freckles and wasn't so pale any longer, his messy hair suiting him a good sight more.

"You scared me half to death," she scolded them, not sounding amused at all with their antics. "Hamold, you just stand there and let them?!"

Kaleen jumped again but not as badly when both Jareth and Mavid suddenly rushed at her, Jareth wrapping his arms tightly in a hug around her shoulders while Mavid leaned in and hugged her waist. They both kissed her cheeks at the same time and smiled at her lovingly. Hamold stepped up and placed a gentle kiss on her forehead as he handed her a little green and silver trim box.

"What is this for?" she asked, clearly confused and already touched at the same time.

"Because we don't do this for you enough," Hamold smiled, "Open it."

She did so with Jareth and Mavid still hanging onto her and inside the little green box was an ornate little crystal like the kind Jareth always made. Kaleen picked it up carefully. "Turn it mum," Jareth coaxed, excitement in his voice like Sarah had only rarely heard before.

Kaleen did so and her hand flew to her mouth in a gasp when the sounds of Jareth, Mavid, and Hamold singing to her in a language Sarah didn't know emanated from it. For a time Sarah could only listen to the music, Kaleen's attention fixed on it as her boys continued to smile and hold her. "Oh, thank you," she gasped again, Sarah's view getting fuzzy as the queen began to cry. Kaleen kissed first Jareth and then Mavid, who both released her when Hamold wrapped her up in his arms and placed kisses over her cheeks.

"Leave, boys," he ordered with a smirk, his eyes intense on her.

Sarah jerked back from the memory before it could go anywhere else, already at a cross between nine different emotions or so. The little green box on the pedestal was definitely the same one from the memory. Kaleen pulled her face from the memory as well, slightly wet-eyed herself. She saw Sarah staring at the box behind her and touched the old thing carefully with the tips of her fingers. "That was one of my most beloved memories. And the most wonderful gift they had ever given me. I keep the crystal still, in a very safe place."

Sarah didn't know what to say first, there was a lot to say though as her mind continued to throw back the images she had just seen at her. "I see what you meant about Jareth… as a child."

Both females chuckled at that. "Yes, well it all worked out at least. I had just about forgotten what a whiney little beast he used to be sometimes."

 _That hasn't changed much_ , Sarah thought to herself humorlessly. "Does Jareth have a younger sibling? I saw you were pregnant in one of the memor–" Sarah cut herself off right away at the way Kaleen's face suddenly seemed to just cave in on herself.

"I was, but it didn't keep," was all she said.

"I'm sorry." Sarah didn't press her further on that, trying to think of something to say to change the subject for the queen's sake.

"So, Mavid would call you him mum?" Sarah asked, feeling surprised by that as well.

Kaleen nodded her head. "And he would call Hamold his papa. We saw him as a son from the moment he was brought into this house, so we felt no need to discourage this. Some other families prefer to keep attendants as just another of the serving staff, but when you grow so close and are around them every day—in many cases even helping to raise them—I don't personally see the possibility of such a thing. I know I could never treat Mavid as just another servant. Unless there was a formal dinner being held he always sat at the table to eat with us. That is certainly not permitted of servants."

Kaleen obviously had a fondness for Mavid and a view into a different side of him from what Sarah had come to know. "Mavid is always mean to _me_ ," she confessed.

Kaleen's face was thoughtful and she let out a small sigh. "I'm sorry to hear that, Sarah, but it doesn't surprise me all that much. Mavid is extremely protective of Jareth, it's both in his nature and what he was raised to do. He's never been particularly fond of any female Jareth has ever been with for longer than a night. Even though I try, I must honestly say there's never been one I entirely trusted with my son either, you included."

That was a lot less than comforting and Sarah didn't know what she could say in response. every time she thought Kaleen might be sympathetic to her something was said to remind her that Kaleen still didn't entirely like her yet and Sarah couldn't help but feel the same. She just didn't get the female sometimes. Maybe it was the same thing for Kaleen.

The queen cleared her throat and picked up the long skirts of her dress. "Well, it's getting late. I'll return you to your husband."

X

For a very limited time you can now buy a copy of my origional fantasy work 'the Book of Lo by R. N. Floyd' on sale ($7 savings) courtesy of Amazon. Go to Amazon dot com and check it out today or show your support by telling your friends. Also available in ebook format. Look for the dragon skull ;)


	36. Chapter 36

We all know what's Henson's and what's mine, but the song Beauty and the Beast is Bowie's, like most everything else Jareth has ever sung in this story.

Beta is ASunInWinter

X

"My mother seemed rather nostalgic earlier when she relinquished you."

Sarah didn't turn around to face him, her arms crossed on the edge of the sunken bath to rest her head on. Her washed and wet hair was gathered to the side of her neck and the warm water felt good against her skin and relaxed her almost as much as Jareth did as he ran his hands over her back gently, lathering it with soap. "Oh?" was all she said in response.

She knew why of course, and although she wasn't necessarily hiding it from Jareth, she just hadn't told him about the 'picture viewing' that his mother had showed to her. She was still a little confused by it honestly. It seemed almost like she had just seen proof that contrary to her previous beliefs Jareth had not simply been born some domineering and overbearing king of the goblins with his loyal thug Mavid at his side. They had both been children, as sweet as Toby was. And even into their later years they both knew how to be kind. She had seen it, and still had a hard time believing it. They had parents who loved them, despite any of their faults, and they loved them back.

 _Why can't I ever see that side of them?_ Sarah pouted to herself. Although to be honest it was easier to act hateful towards them when they acted that way towards her. And for that matter Jareth _had_ continued with his civility with her throughout the day. She had told Toby another story about the Aboveground before putting him to bed, this time about what a public library was like, and once again Jareth had sat off to the side and listened without interruption and without a word about it when she was done. He had stared off at the wall and looked over his nails like he had been utterly bored waiting for her to finish up, but she couldn't help but wonder if maybe he had been listening to her story about a little piece of Aboveground life too.

Once Toby was asleep Jareth had led her straight back to his room and they had started their bathing routine again. "What did you two do all afternoon?" Jareth asked again, his voice full of curiosity and possibly even suspicion as he ran his hands up her shoulders and rubbed in the soap there.

Even though she tried hard to hide it, Sarah practically melted under the touch despite herself. "Just what you said we would likely do, talked about girly things and sipped tea."

"What exactly are girly things?"

Sarah thought back on it, her mind still fuzzy from the way he was touching her shoulders. She wished he would stop talking so she could just enjoy how it felt. "She asked how Toby was doing, how things were over here. Asked about the breeding." Sarah turned her head a little more so she could see him out of the corner of her eye. "She mentioned that fae women only are pregnant for like two months."

Jareth simply nodded his head. "It's a great deal less than a human's time, yes, and far more dangerous," he confirmed factually.

His fingers pressed against a particularly wonderful spot by Sarah's shoulder blades and she arched before she could stop herself, settling back against the side of the tub quickly. The slight pause in Jareth's movements as she did so told her that he obviously hadn't missed her pleased reaction and Sarah could see the slightest smirk pull at his lips as he refocused his efforts there. Like a switch had been thrown Sarah felt like her mind automatically turned off and her whole body relaxed, her back arching slightly both to him and from him now and then as his fingers worked magic on her. "I take it you enjoy this?" Jareth asked, the smirk evident in his voice.

Sarah didn't bother fighting it as she closed her eyes and rested her cheek against her arm. "Mm-hm," she confirmed.

Jareth chuckled softly but continued. "That does remind me though," he said after a moment, thankfully not stopping what he was doing. "About the time lengths of pregnancies that is; do you remember meeting Loki and his second wife—the pregnant one—at the fairy ring?"

Sarah simply nodded her head, still too relaxed to speak. Loki had jokingly tried to kill Mavid before showing his true form. Some great friend of Jareth's or something like that. She remembered now that he had invited her to their baby shower.

"Well his second wife, Cleo, will be birthing any day now. She was estimated to be due yesterday actually. We will need to attend that and I wanted to tell you now so we can avoid one of your trial-by-fire-scenarios."

Sarah's eyes opened at that. "I thought we were invited to the baby shower, it sounds like you're talking about the actual birth."

"What's a baby shower?" Jareth asked.

Since his hands had stopped moving now Sarah turned to face him, "In my world a baby shower is when people get together and give baby supplies to the mother-to-be well before the baby is born. Loki told me at the fairy ring that that was what we were invited to."

Jareth let out a little sigh and eased back in the water. "If I had to guess I would say that Loki knew very well that there was a difference between the two things and called the birthing that in hopes of getting a laugh out of it when you showed up."

"Well that certainly wouldn't have been funny at all," Sarah insisted firmly, her cheeks heating with her discomfiture at the thought. She suddenly liked Loki a lot less.

"He wouldn't have done it to be mean," Jareth defended, "It's just how Loki is. If he can make at least one person smile he thinks that any joke is worth it. A birthing, however, is an event down here in the underground just as a wedding would be. Those closest to the family attend and while the birth takes place in one room guests honored enough to be there can walk about and mingle in another close by. If all goes well we would be among the very first to lay eyes on the new babe."

Sarah let out a breath she hadn't known she'd been holding. "Oh well that's not so bad I guess. I was afraid for a moment that it would be something like everyone cramped in a tiny room together to watch as Cleo gives birth with all the screaming and the blood and stuff."

Jareth shook his head. "That was stopped well before even my grandfather was born, it's too dangerous for the baby and the mother that way."

Sarah nodded her head in understanding, thankful for that. "How will we know when to go?"

"Loki sent out summoning crystals with his invitations, it's in Mavid's possession now. If it turns pink it means she's gone into the first stages of her labor and he will let us know to prepare."

Although she still wasn't jazzed about Loki's attempted trickery on her, she supposed it could have been worse. From the sounds of it the worst case scenario would have been her finding out from someone else that the screams in the other room were from Cleo actually giving birth. That wasn't as bad as her first thought of walking into a room to find herself suddenly staring between the girl's legs and figuring it out then. "Ok," she agreed, resting her arms back on the side of the large tub, propping her chin up on them. "That sounds ok."

Jareth moved up next to her and Sarah allowed him to turn her head to him, cupping her cheek in his hand to turn her. There was lust in his eyes, but there was also a warmth there that she wasn't as familiar with. "It's a great honor to be invited to such an event, there are often no more than ten or twenty guests invited to attend, and there is no such thing as a 'plus one' to these."

"Will Toby be coming too?"

Jareth shook his head. "He will be spending time with my mother while we are there. It will be just you, Mavid, and I."

Sarah didn't respond, indifferent to that information presented with her. She no longer felt that Toby would be in such great danger from spending bits of time with Jareth's mother and had been there when Loki had invited Mavid so that wasn't news to her. "How long will we be there?"

Jareth actually chuckled at that. "I'm not sure Sarah, can you tell me how long this particular birthing will take?"

Sarah realized that her question had been a trifle silly when put that way and allowed herself to smile a little before she splashed a little bit of water at Jareth for pointing that out to her. He shook the water off his face and pulled her away from the side of the tub into his arms, running his hands over her back to remove the soap now as he leaned in to kiss her.

Sarah's immediate reflex was to pull away, but she fought against it this one time. She couldn't remember the last time Jareth had been this pleasant to her and didn't want to be the cause for it to end, just as Kaleen had advised her earlier. The kiss was gentle and his lips were soft against hers, and when he deepened the kiss to explore her and tease her sweetly Sarah could feel her eyes roll back in her head at the taste of him. It was like kissing some sort of spiced cookie and she wondered if he had eaten one earlier or if it was just him.

Jareth moved her easily in the water up against the side of the tub and when his breathing hitched Sarah knew just where this was heading. Should she fight it perhaps? Would it be so bad if just for tonight she didn't? It wasn't like this would be her last chance to do so. Maybe if she did relent a little he would connect it with being kind to her and do so more often. Was she selling herself for kindness in that case though?

Her thoughts raced and Jareth's impassioned kisses eventually managed to quiet them and Sarah jumped when a surprising shock of lust shot through her when his hands parted her knees so his hips could come up flush against hers, his erection hard against her sex. Jareth broke the kiss and changed his attention to her neck and jaw line, placing tender kisses from her chin down to her breast as she wrapped her legs around his waist.

The sex was surprisingly gentle and slow paced and once the water in the bath started to cool they moved out onto a towel on the edge of it and Sarah tried hard not to hate herself for it when she clung to him as he quickened his pacing, falling into a rhythm she was more used to. She found herself panting underneath him as she worked to keep up and she gasped as another shock of pleasure shot through her when she happened to look over and see the way Jareth's hips swung against her in the mirrored wall. Seeing what was happening to her as she was feeling it sent shivers through her and she couldn't bring herself to look away from the way Jareth moved against her, his hands tightening on her hips as he tried to penetrate her even further even though he was already buried up to the hilt. When he reached down to touch her at the same time she came undone. She called out his name and dug her nails into his arms as she came and was still clinging to him when he did the same just moments later.

As Sarah laid underneath him and regained her breathing, she made herself promise not to dwell on this after tonight. The sex had felt good, and relaxed her. She had no choice but to accept that it had been with Jareth. It was always with Jareth. She wouldn't allow herself to be swayed tonight in one direction or another over this. After all it was just sex, wasn't it?

Jareth smirked down at her arrogantly and placed more kisses over her breasts, his fingers playing and rubbing at them. For a moment Sarah found herself wishing that they were a bit bigger, but scolded herself for that right away. They were a perfectly natural size and she wasn't close to being flat either. Besides, what good would it do her for them to be bigger here? It would just give Jareth more to grope at and despite what had just happened she still wasn't ready to give in to any thoughts of wanting to please him without personal gain. The sex she had gotten something out of, the boobs was a silly thought that was a reminiscent of her time in the aboveground.

Sarah let out a sigh that Jareth took for pleasure and moved up to kiss her again. _Maybe I'm just doomed to over think everything tonight_ , she decided to herself as his kiss slowed her mind once more.

X

Jareth scanned over his work at his desk without really even focusing on it, going through the motions as he looked over papers and dealt with anything else he had to as he hummed a tune he had made up long ago and had named ' _Beauty and the Beast'_.

Mavid was staring at him on the other side of the desk top as he did this. "Pleasant mood today?" the male asked, a hint of bitterness in his voice.

"Very pleasant, yes," Jareth smirked to himself, thinking about the way Sarah had moaned his name and rocked her hips against him as her sweetness clenched around him like a fist with her orgasm the previous night. He loved it when she was sweet to him like that. Jareth turned his attention to Mavid, who was with him because Jareth had decided that Toby was safe enough with Sarah since his hair was already short now. Mavid's hands were no longer bandaged up, but the ugly scabs still remained on the backs of his knuckles. Normally a fae would hide such things, but Jareth suspected Mavid had them out for _his_ benefit since he was the one who had ordered the male to punch a brick wall in repercussion of his assault on the female he had mated with. Blood had covered Mavid's hands before Jareth had allowed him to stop and seek out Aboris. Jareth sought a way to turn his mind from it. "Speaking of pleasant things, has there been any word from the pixies yet?"

Mavid shrugged, but Jareth had noticed the way he had immediately tensed up when he had asked about it. "The mail is sitting on your side of the desk."

Jareth located the pile and skipped his scolding to Mavid for not checking it again; for the last two days Mavid had left the mail to him, probably too nervous to look himself. Jareth sorted through the small stack of orders for goods in the Labyrinth from other kingdoms, the invitations to different events and gatherings, and a halfway written out death threat that eventually turned into a recipe for karbobs that a goblin would send every now and then. Jareth cast that one aside in mild disgust without caring where on the floor it landed, but he fell still when he saw the envelope that had been behind that one. It carried the seal of the pixies on it in orange wax and he dropped the others on his desk as he began to tear into it without even bothering to reach for his letter opener.

Mavid noticed the change and anxiousness in Jareth's movements and sat up too, his eyes locked on the letter as Jareth nearly tore it in half pulling it from its envelope. Once he finally managed to emancipate the bit of parchment from its confines the room was dead silent as his eyes skimmed over the gist of the letter, looking for that one bit of information he cared about.

"What does it say?" Mavid just about snapped at him, utterly tense where he sat.

Jareth saw it just then. "The breeding was a success," he read out loud before his own brain could even work to process it. Jareth looked over the sentence again, then a third time as he tried to fully process it. Mavid had gotten up from his seat and was now quickly coming around the desk to look on over Jareth's shoulder.

Jareth felt the grin split across his face seconds before Mavid snatched the paper from him and brought it up closer to his face, his eyes darting all over it before he looked up to meet his eyes; a grin slowly cracking across his own face too. "It was a success," Mavid repeated, sounding very relieved.

Jareth could imagine why; if the mating had failed than they would have rescheduled and gone through the whole process again. He let out his own sigh of relief that he wouldn't have to deal with the pixies for much longer.

He had been pleased before, but now with the news that Toby would have an attendant all his own in less than sixty nights… Jareth felt practically lighter than air. Mavid was already sliding back into his chair, the letter still in his hands as his eyes passed over it again and again, his face still holding onto relief.

"When you are done," Jareth smirked, "Write a response of thank you to the pixies and remind them to send _prompt_ reports of the mother's condition throughout the pregnancy. Really emphasize that 'prompt' part. I want to know every change."

Mavid nodded his head and with a long sigh and a look of calmness on his face he set the letter into a file at the corner of his side of the desk.

"How are you?" Jareth found himself asking, taking in the minimal emotion Mavid was showing.

Mavid paused in reaching for his desk drawer for letter supplies and seemed to think about it a moment before shrugging. "Fine… proud and shocked that I pulled it off, honestly," he laughed, shaking his head in disbelief as he ran a hand through his hair, pushing the longer strands back over the short ones before they fell right back into place.

Jareth nodded his head in understanding. "Two faes successfully mating on the first try is quite a feat, almost unheard of," he congratulated.

Mavid scoffed at that. "It could have been the drugs either of us were on, or the fact that she had been watched for a month for the perfect time to try it, or any number of things… I'm going to claim it was caused by the slap," Mavid grinned, leaning back in his chair and ignoring the irritated scowl Jareth cast him.

"That's a far reach just to justify what you did," he leaned back in his own seat too, kicking a leg up onto the desk. "Besides," he smirked, "If it had been the slap that had caused the pregnancy to take you would have been a father a hundred times over by now, I'm sure of it."

Mavid laughed and nodded his head as he reached again for his drawer and slid it open, the laugh vanishing and his body tensing once again as something in there caught his attention.

"What is it?" Jareth asked, forgoing his relaxed posture to sit up.

Mavid held up the crystal for Jareth to see, the one Loki had sent them that was now glowing a fabulous pink color.

Jareth's heart leapt almost as quickly as he did from his chair. "Send out that letter Mavid, then take my son to my mother and meet me back here."

"The odds are stunning," Mavid mused to himself.

 _Indeed they were_ , Jareth thought to himself. Woman could tend to share pregnancies like others would illnesses. When one of them were in such a state it always seemed to be closely followed by another one. Both the pregnancies and that they would have another baby in their care soon were good signs for his chances with Sarah.

Mavid nodded his head and Jareth quickly put his stuff away, throwing things into any drawers they would fit into as his mind spun with everything that would need to be done for both Loki's birthing and the baby that would soon be in their possession. Clearing the castle of goblins and keeping it clear for some time would be immensely difficult, but the first year of the child's life could be factored on it. He would have to convince Sarah to wear something appropriate for the situation, and to hurry about it. While Mavid took Toby to the Devine Castle Jareth would help Sarah attire herself properly and see to his own outfit as well. A birthing was a formal event after all. No one showed up to a birthing looking anything but their best.

X

"Isn't this exciting?!" one female wearing a dress bigger than she herself was squealed and jumped up and down.

"These things are always exciting, but remember to calm yourself, no one celebrates till we know the outcome after all," a haughty older female with a spiky black and white hat replied… though that could have possibly been her hair.

Sarah had been briefly told their names, but couldn't remember now. She wasn't too concerned with it though, more concerned at the moment with the bodice in her dress that seemed perfectly happy to be crush her sides. She was standing with a large group of women in a large manor that belonged to Loki and his two wives. She looked over her shoulder and then over the huge puffed sleeve of her dress in irritation to the group of men that were standing around across the room chatting it up. Jareth and Mavid were in there somewhere, and although she couldn't see Jareth amongst them she was able to get a glimpse of Mavid before some beef of a male with ram horns growing from his head blocked her view. She had gotten the news from Jareth that Linra was pregnant as he had been stuffing her into this ridiculous thing someone had thought to call a dress and then he had rushed her through it without really giving her a chance to ask about it at all. Her head was still spinning with all the questions she had and what Kaleen had told and shown her of her own experiences with Mavid becoming Jareth's attendant.

Sarah could only hope that now that there would soon be a baby in the castle Jareth would stop trying so hard to get her knocked up.

She turned back to the group of females with a sigh.

Loki and his wives were all in a room adjoined to the vast one the twenty or so guests (herself included) stood around in. Sarah couldn't hear anything that was going on in the birthing room, and was honestly thankful for that. They had arrived over two hours ago and thus far the door to that room had only opened once, when an attendant went in with towels and a bucket of ice. Sarah figured Cleo must still be dilating because it had been all quiet for the brief time the door had been opened. The room had just sort of turned into women on one side and men on the other, all dressed extravagantly to the nines and all looking complicatedly elegant in their way over-the-top styles. Sarah was about ready to start tearing at the annoyingly large sleeves of her own silver gown that stayed in a puffy drape all the way down to her wrists. If she had known this thing was lurking in the back of her wardrobe she would have found a pitchfork and gone in after it before it could ever have found the chance to prey upon her. She had already received compliments on it, but she thought she just looked like a bloated fish.

Sarah was so caught up in her dress that she didn't realize someone was speaking to her till she was lightly tapped on the hand by one of the females next to her, who pointed out the one who had spoken to her with a shift of her eyes. "Sorry what was that?" Sarah asked, remembering belatedly that the more appropriate response would have been something like 'beg pardon' as she turned to the female who had been addressing her, simply taking in the fact that the woman had pale blue skin and slits for eyes with as much ease now as she used to take in if she was talking to someone with green eyes in the Aboveground.

"I inquired as to how you are connected to the family," the female informed her, seeming untroubled about Sarah's inattention or her informal response.

"Oh, my husband is friends with Loki."

"The goblin king is your husband isn't he?" the female asked, her eyes flicking down to the ring ever trapped on Sarah's finger, her transparent eyelids snapping shut and open quickly in a blink that gave Sarah a moment's pause.

Sarah looked down at the ring herself grimly before shaking the feeling off. "Yes he is."

"Congratulations on your recent joining," the female simply said politely.

"He's kind of arrogant," another female piped up suddenly, causing a couple females to gasp and a couple others to giggle with her statement. Sarah took in the woman standing next to her that had said that. This one was human-looking, except for her eyes which reminded Sarah of looking at black glass. Her hair was slightly darker brown than her skin and two long whisker-looking hairs grew out from the corners of each eyebrow. It sort of made Sarah think of a sea lion for some reason.

Although she was willing to agree with the female of course, Sarah couldn't do so in front of everyone like that. It would probably go back to Jareth that she was disrespecting him or something and she wasn't willing to give up the pleasantness between them for the fighting so soon.

"Some would do well to remember their place," the elder female with the shocking hat—hair?—scolded the young woman, casting Sarah an unnecessarily apologetic glance. "Don't mind her darling, she is a selkie and has yet to understand how things are done outside of the water."

A selkie, Sarah had heard of those before… women who took off their seal-skin disguises when they came out on land. If someone stole their seal skin and hid it they were trapped on land. Sarah wondered if that was the case with this woman, who was now looking at the floor like she wished she hadn't said anything. Practically a literal fish out of water... Sarah knew the feeling.

Everyone suddenly stopped talking when a loud scream pierced the hall and Sarah turned her head around to see that one of the servants had opened the door to the birthing room, closing it quickly behind them and making eye contact with no one as they quickly carried a bucket of water away from the room.

All was silent again now that the door had been shut, but the atmosphere of the room was nothing like it had been. There was an unspoken excitement and anxiety from everyone because it was obvious that the actual birth was now taking place and every pair of eyes was glued to the door, Sarah's included. She couldn't help but wonder how long it would be now, and hoped that everything went alright inside that room. She couldn't help but wonder what it was like in there for Cleo, to be going through labor and delivering a baby while Loki's peers stood just outside the door dressing up and making polite conversation over drinks.

Sarah jumped when she felt a strong hand on her hip and looked over her shoulder to see that Jareth had made his way over to her, his eyes focused on the door as well before they glanced to her, sparing her a reassuring wink. "No use staring at it darling," he drawled, "It won't open again based on the collective will of this room alone."

Sarah nodded her head and didn't resist when he ushered her away from the other women, leading her over to one of the food tables set out and taking a string of grapes for himself. "Loki knows some strange people," she commented, helping herself to some food she recognized from the meal with his parents, some little grey berries that were surprisingly sweet when bitten into.

Jareth smirked then, "Yes he does have a way of finding them." he mused, "Are you enjoying yourself?"

Sarah thought about that. She wouldn't really call this a blast, but honestly the only thing she could complain about was the dress she had to wear. "It's not bad," she agreed. "Given my basis for comparison it's pretty nice actually."

Despite having pulled her away from the door, Jareth's eyes still darted over there every once in a while as they ate their snacks. Sarah couldn't help but think that maybe he had pulled her over here to distract himself more so than her. "Are you nervous?" she asked.

Jareth raised his brow in surprise before chewing the grape he had just popped into his mouth. "Honestly I am, but I always am during these things. Cleo should do fine, she is a human after all."

"Is she from the Aboveground?"

"No, she was born and raised here, I think Loki mentioned that her father had been though. Perhaps it was her grandfather."

"Oh," was all Sarah could think to respond with.

Jareth was quiet for a moment, watching her as he chewed another grape. "Would you be interested in getting to know her?" he asked once he had swallowed.

Sarah was surprised at that. "What?"

"I know you were upset over Lilith, perhaps sometime after this I can speak to Loki and set up a visit for you two. She is about your age and is a polite girl. Very respectful to those around her and will be a fine mother."

His pitch was a little odd to Sarah. It sounded like he was thinking of setting up a play-date or whatever with Cleo. He probably hoped Cleo would be a good influence on her, but Sarah remembered how she had been during the fairy ring and she had only seemed withdrawn and subdued. Sarah wasn't really against it, but it wasn't high on her priority list either. She simply shrugged in response rather than saying as much. "Uh, sure."

Jareth frowned a little bit, obviously not caring for her lack of enthusiasm on this. "You were so upset over Lilith and now you don't care if you have any friends or not? I thought it would be a nice gesture," he informed her, sounding just a little bit hurt underneath his hard tone.

Sarah let out a little sigh, maybe he was trying to be nice. As tiresome and annoying as it was to stroke his ego, she forced herself to do it so he didn't hold onto this and just allow it to build up into anger later. "It is a very nice idea, Jareth. I just didn't act excited because I don't really know anything about Cleo."

He still looked slightly put out.

"I-I could give it a try. It might be nice." She couldn't help but feel like she just lost a fight or something, even though they hadn't really had one and if they had the topic had been silly. _This sucks_ , her mind screamed at her in response to her forced kowtowing.

Jareth's lip curled up into a smirk and as he leaned in to kiss her forehead Sarah couldn't help but think about just how right that selkie woman had been.

Sarah's attention along with everyone else's in the room was pulled to away when the door to the delivery room suddenly burst open and Jareth actually held his breath when the midwife stepped through the door. Her long white robe showed traces of blood and other stains here and there around her arms and chest. She was so old in fact that her ears not only had grown high above her white hairline, but had also managed to curl back downwards. Her elderly face withered so that it was hard to see what expression she wore to gain any indication of how the birth had gone.

The room was dead silence as the midwife straightened up and held out her hands, both palms up towards the ceiling as a large smiled cracked its way through her wrinkles. This gesture of the palms meant that both the baby and the mother lived and Jareth let out a shaky laugh of relief while the rest of the room burst into cheers and applause and everyone started toasting the Green Man all at once.

"What happened?" Sarah yelled over the ear-filling ruckus to Jareth.

"They both live, the birth is over," Jareth grinned down at her, pulling her back into his arms and hugging her tightly against him.

X

"Better?"

"Like you would never believe," Sarah sighed happily as the insufferable dress she had been wearing was lowered to the floor. The first thing she did once the crushing bodice had been removed from her skin was suck in a deep breath of air into her deprived lungs.

"I couldn't agree more," Jareth smirked as his ran his hands over the bare skin at her sides, placing a kiss against the back of her shoulder. "The outfits are brutal for a reason though, a small way of empathizing with the mother to willingly go through pain for the sake of a successful birth. Our willingness to wear them can in a way signify that we feel as close to Loki as he does to us. I guarantee you not a single person in that room with us was any more comfortable than you were, myself included."

Another one of those odd customs then, Sarah realized.

"How did Loki come to have two wives anyway?" Sarah asked, having to simply assume that that sort of thing was legal down here since not a single person had called him out on it.

"Like many males his first wife was chosen for him through an arranged marriage. She is a fae too, so a babe is hoped for from that union, but his second wife he chose himself." There was a pause as Jareth reached out and ran his hand down the side of her hip and then did so again down her backside.

Sarah turned to face him then, crossing her arms over her chest out of instinct. "I don't understand though, I thought we were supposed to see Loki and Cleo's baby today, but after that old lady let everyone know how it went everyone practically ran to their rooms for the night."

Jareth reached out to pushed her hands away from her chest so they no longer obstructed his view and Sarah forced herself to not take a step back from him. "We will see the babe tomorrow, tonight it is only the parents that will look upon it. Everyone retired to their rooms to do exactly as we are now," he hadn't even fully finished his sentence before he had scooped Sarah up in his arms bridal style and carried her towards the bed they had been given for the night.

"Do births normally turn everyone on like this?" Sarah mused, confounded by the fact that Jareth was very much ready and at attention.

"It's considered a great deal of good luck," he simply shrugged, tossing her on the bed playfully rather than setting her down gently and grinning when it caused Sarah to squeal in surprise.

"Why on earth is that?" Sarah found herself smiling despite herself when Jareth crawled up her legs, placing kisses at her knees and thighs as he went.

"Because a successful birthing almost always leads to successful conceptions," Jareth smirked, completely unaware that the mood was officially over with for Sarah now as he reached down and spread her legs apart.

Sarah couldn't stop herself before she snapped her legs back together, surprising both Jareth and herself.

Jareth raised his brows at her like he expected her to relent, and although Sarah felt that might be the wiser choice, she couldn't bring herself to do it. She didn't want to get pregnant! "Jareth-"

"Don't start this again Sarah," he warned her, taking firm hold on her knees once more to move them apart. This time she didn't fight him, but she refused to do anything else but lay there as he moved and panted over her.

When he started to breathe heavier she knew he was about to come, and when he did she raked her nails hard down his back as he spilled his seed into her and Jareth cried out her name as she did so.

X

Jareth let out a groan as he arched his back once more, unable to place distance between the strict cloth of his top and the tender and welted skin there. It had felt amazing at the time when Sarah had raked her nails over him in what he had assumed was passion, but when he had woken up with ten burning lines still down his back this morning he suspected maybe it hadn't been. Jareth glanced over to his wife from where she stood next to him, waiting their turn to meet the new babe and take their leave. She looked bored and a little weary, her eyes focused ahead at the ever-approaching door that led into the birthing room. Guests were only going in little by little, and there were only two more groups in front of them. They would be able to see Loki and his new family soon.

"The first thing I'm doing when we get back is soak for an hour in a bath," Mavid whispered into his ear from his other side.

Jareth smirked back at him to show he had heard and planned to end up there himself eventually. The first thing on his mind though was that right after this he would go collect his son from his parents. All this commotion about babes as of late made him want to hold onto his own very much. No doubt his mother would be frantic wanting to know if Loki's child had been born or not. He certainly intended to get out of his clothes upon reaching home though, which were uncomfortable for more reasons than just his back. The boots he was wearing now came all the way up to his hips and rubbed against too many things to be considered anything close to comfortable. Jareth shifted his weight in them again, doing so gracefully enough that no one would have noticed had they not been watching for it, whereas Sarah tended to just slump first this way than that.

The couple ahead of them were coming back out of the room now, beaming with happiness as they nodded their heads to the goblin monarchy and walked on by. Jareth pushed on Sarah's back to signal it was time to go in.

The room was firstly very clean and secondly very white, as all birthing rooms amongst the fae traditions were. The instruments and healers were long gone by now, replaced with tables holding extravagant gifts for the family and the babe from those in attendance, and there only remained two nurses to see to the babe's needs and Loki's first wife, who looked absolutely beside herself with happiness. The babe itself was currently centered in its mother's frail arms in the very middle of a large white bed, a white swaddling blanket wrapped around it.

Loki was perched beside Cleo on the bed, but got up as soon as Jareth and Mavid came into his sight. Jareth returned his friend's customary greeting of a kiss on the lips and Mavid followed suit, then Loki embraced Sarah in the same manner and Jareth smiled despite himself when she tensed in utter surprise once more.

"My deepest congratulations to you and your family," Jareth greeted him embracing Loki once again in another hug.

"Don't congratulate me until you actually see her, for all you know some of the troll genes from my great grandmother slipped into her," Loki laughed, turning around and taking his new babe gently from her mother's arms, surprising both Jareth and Cleo when he turned and held her out to him. Babes, especially newborns, were never just passed around between beings, even amongst friends. Jareth glanced to Sarah who was simply looking on like she'd seen this all before. What she didn't know was that this was an immense sign of trust and closeness between Loki and him that Jareth hadn't even been fully aware existed till just this moment.

A lump formed in the back of his throat and he forced himself to swallow past it as he reached out and took Loki's daughter in his hands, staring down at her in complete awe. She was so very tiny, being only a day old. Her little eyes were cracked open just enough for him to make out the blue color of them as she stared back up at him.

Loki said something but Jareth was too enthralled to have caught it, his heart fluttering in his chest as the babe blinked. "Hmm?"

Loki chuckled again. "I said I named her Dalphane, the field pixie's word for beauty."

"It suits her," Jareth cooed, running his gloved fingers over her little cheeks and arms.

Mavid stepped around him and handed over the envelope they had brought as a gift. Inside it signed over three free vats of goblin wine a year for the first hundred of Dalphane's life, and an agreement to provide her jewelry for her future wedding from the stones the dwarves mined along the mountain edge of the labyrinth. A substantial but fitting gift, and one Jareth was glad he had put together now that he had her coddled in his arms. Loki took the envelope but would not open it till later after all guests had departed.

"Certainly is a beauty isn't she?" Loki's first wife smiled, looking on from her proper spot against the wall.

"She certainly is," Jareth nodded towards the willowy female fae. "You all are very fortunate." He felt almost resentful when Loki reached his arms out to take her back. Jareth passed her back very carefully, fearful of jostling her just the slightest bit. She moved her arms as her father took her and Jareth felt his heart clench at the slight movement. He suddenly wanted to drag Sarah back to their room and tumble with her all over again in hopes of making another newborn all his own.

Loki laughed quietly so as to not disturb his daughter. "She'll grow up to be a beauty, having my genes in her after all," he joked, "Perhaps we should set up an arranged marriage between her and your son now before any other boys have the chance to even look upon her."

Sarah stiffened beside him but Jareth was already chuckling politely in response. "While I could favor that idea, I've already decided to not enter Little Jareth into any arrangements. I reserve the rights to choose _my_ own bride," he said with a sly smirk thrown to Sarah. "I will afford my son the same opportunity."

Loki laughed then, "You're a brave one! You say that till he brings home a naga or a siren. I still remember that snipe of a snake woman you thought would be a good idea to get tangled up with… literally. We'll both see just how fast you slap an arrangement on him when that happens."

Jareth and Mavid both laughed with their friend at the teasing, remembering indeed the naga Loki had been referring to from his youth, the sex had been great up until she had tried to devour him. He had managed to kill her but not before being bit, suffering through her poison for days afterward, with both Loki and Mavid laughing at him the whole time. He had learned his lesson on nagas after that. "We'll see, but I hope my son has more sense than I had in my youth."

"If he truly is your son he won't," Loki grinned.

X

Sarah felt like she was grinding rocks in her stomach, perched on the edge of her seat as her abundance of nerves caused both her legs to bounce, even with Toby seated upon them. He was certainly enjoying the bouncing, completely unaware of what was happening around him. In truth nothing was happening at the moment, Sarah sitting with him in one of the lounging rooms she favored with Clora and Ishapelle. They had returned from their home visits just days before after having been gone for several nights each. The castle had been very boring for Sarah during that time with no one to occupy her during the day but Toby, which honestly was just fine, but there were days that Jareth would keep his son with him in his office that would just drag for her. Now they were back with plenty of new stories and gossip, and Sarah didn't have the mind to listen to any of it.

Even though she was too far from the window to see out of it and the door was closed, she would still find herself staring at them every now and then. Just waiting for Jareth and Mavid to come back. It had been about two months since they had gotten word that Mavid's pairing with Linra had worked. Sarah hadn't realized it at all till yesterday when Jareth told her they had received another letter from the pixies, stating that Linra had gone into labor and died during the birth, but the child lived and waited to be picked up. Jareth and Mavid had left right away.

Sarah wondered if it would be a boy or a girl, and worried over what would happen when they returned with it. There were still goblins in parts of the castle, but Jareth had managed to block them off entirely from some of the main hallways leading to the more luxurious lounge and recreation rooms and the dining room. As always they couldn't come near the mirror hallway.

Sarah startled when she felt a hand on her shoulder and looked up to see Ishapell standing next to her. "Should we play a game?" the female offered, seeing that she was distracted.

Sarah let out a sigh and was about to agree, but the sound of footsteps out in the hall brought everything in the room to a stop and all eyes glued themselves to the door as the footfalls drew closer. Toby continued to squirm in Sarah's grip and she held on to both him and her breath as she stared down the door. After an eternity it opened and she jumped to her feet, bringing Toby to rest on her hip as she took it all in.

Jareth entered the room first, his face a picture of a peaceful happiness as he held the door for Mavid, who moved very slowly and carefully as if he were deathly afraid of jostling the little wrapped bundle held against the black armor over his chest. "He's sleeping," Jareth warned everyone in the room.

It was a boy then?! Sarah felt like her heart was swelling as she led the way over to Mavid, hiking Toby up further on her hip. Mavid took a step closer to her, carefully shuffling the babe around to free one of his arms.

Without saying a word Mavid very slowly moved a bit of the swaddling cloth away from the babe's head, allowing the face of the newborn to come into view and Sarah stifled her urge to ooh and ahh for fear of waking the precious thing. It was small enough to almost fit in Mavid's hand, being only a day old. His tiny eyes were shut tight and his little face was screwed up in a little baby frown as it slept, but it was just breathtaking all the same. Sarah could see the little black hairs already starting to litter its tiny head.

"Ohhh," Ishapell cooed softly from over her shoulder.

"What's his name?" Sarah whispered, afraid to wake it.

"He doesn't have one yet," Mavid whispered back. "It will be up to you and Jareth to name him."

Jareth came over to her and Sarah relinquished Toby to him, who was happy to move to his father's arms. "Baby dada, a baby!" Toby told him excitedly.

Jareth laughed and told Toby to quiet down so the baby could sleep. "That's your new friend I was telling you about. The baby is ours and will be staying here with us now." Jareth turned his attention to Sarah then, a grin of happiness lighting up his face in a way that was honestly very handsome and it threw her off guard for a moment. "What do you think of him?" Jareth asked her, obviously fishing for compliments as though he had himself done something to deserve them.

There was no denying it though, "He's absolutely adorable, Mavid."

Mavid smirked back and looked down at his son with pride painted all over his face and features.

The babe started to stir in his arms then and Sarah's heart was practically stolen from her when its little eyes opened and she took in the beautiful blue color of them, a blue so dark and so deep it almost looked purple. Seconds later he closed his eyes and scrunched up his face even more before letting out a course and full-blast scream, crying its little heart out. Mavid started to rock him instinctually. "Did you see that Jareth?!" Sarah asked, unable to keep the excitement from her voice as she spoke over the baby's cries. "Did you see those eyes?"

"Noisy Mommy!" Toby shouted, his hands planted firmly over both his ears as the babe cried. "I not like it!"

Sarah's smile left her when Jareth turned to Toby in his arms and said something to him in a fae language that she didn't understand.

Toby laughed at it though, tossing back a single word response in the same language.

Sarah made herself remember to ask about it soon, but not now. Apparently at some point Jareth had been teaching Toby the fae language. Behind her the babe was still screaming.

"What's wrong precious thing? What is it?" Clora cooed to the babe, throwing in extra syllables in her baby-talk.

"He's hungry," Jareth smirked, pushing a bag forward that had been draped over his shoulder, "Sarah there's a bottle in there already that he didn't finish earlier, retrieve it please," since Toby filled his arms he was unable to himself.

Sarah reached into the bag and found the bottle amongst other containers, handing it to Mavid so he could feed him. Mavid held it, but didn't feed the babe, waiting instead for her to be unoccupied before moving as if to transfer the newborn over to her. Sarah probably looked as surprised as she felt but didn't fight it when she was given the babe to hold. He was a lot lighter than she was used to now with Toby, practically weighing nothing, and she cradled him protectively against her just as Mavid had done. She shifted his bit of weight over into one arm as Mavid held out the bottle back to her as well and took it from him.

"What's in this?" she asked, eyeing the milk critically. Linra had died during birth hadn't she?

"Wolf's milk," Jareth told her, "I think you witnessed me giving it to Toby a time or two."

She couldn't help the sneer that broke across her lips, she remembered.

"It's perfectly healthy Sarah," Jareth insisted over the babe's continued crying. "It's a common replacement for mother's milk. Better in fact, it will make the babes stronger and more cunning when they are older."

Sarah fought really hard not to roll her eyes at that, she really did. None the less, she had nothing else to offer the babe and so placed the nipple of the bottle against his lips. He latched on immediately and eagerly, sucking down deep like he would never drink again. The sudden lack of screaming in the room was stunning and Sarah chuckled because of it. _He_ certainly liked the milk even if _she_ didn't.

With the baby silently nursing again, Clora and Ishapell moved in closer to her, barely moving their fingertips over the sides of Sarah's arm as though they were afraid to touch the babe themselves. They oohed and aahed for a while, complimenting the babe's head-shape and the fine little fingernails he had. Sarah was reminded of the days and all the times she had nursed Toby from a bottle after he had been born. He had never quite taken to Karen's milk so she had gotten to help out with the feeding. She was suddenly struck by a thought and looked around her at the fae who were all looking on and watching the feeding like it was the most astounding thing, even Toby was watching with curiosity. Out of all of them she was probably the only one with any real baby experience. Jareth hadn't been around Toby for at least the first year of his life and all those that did have babes safeguarded them, making it so that the only way most fae ever held a babe was if they themselves had one. That alone was a known feat in of itself.

"I wanna feed him!" Toby insisted from his perch on his father's hip, intrigued by what Sarah was doing.

"You are too young," Jareth informed him.

That certainly didn't settle the matter as far as Toby was concerned. "I wanna feed him!" he stated again, louder this time. "I can do it!"

"Be silent," Jareth hushed him as Sarah turned away so the baby wasn't in Toby's line of sight. She would have let him hold the bottle if he were more dexterous but at his young age he was still learning his concepts of grasping things and applying pressure. She had watched him over the last few nights slam his spoon into even the softest of foods with all his might just a little too often lately to disagree with Jareth on this one for now.

"I WANNA HOLD!" Toby screamed suddenly at the top of his lungs, causing everyone in the room to jump and the baby let go of the nipple so that he could cry out his fright, making the room extremely loud as the newborn cried and Toby continued on with his tirade the likes of which Sarah had never seen before. "I WANNA! I WANNA!"

Jareth was the first to react, his face turning from shocked to stern as he excused himself and carried Toby with him from the room, shutting the door behind them. As Sarah rocked the babe and Ishapell and Clora cooed reassurances to it to ease its tears she looked over to Mavid, meaning to ask him if he wanted to hold the babe again so she could go help Jareth put Toby to bed, but was cut off when a noise outside the door suddenly silenced Toby's bratty screams and she heard the very muffled sound of a swatting twice more before Toby started crying again, only this time not as loudly and he was no longer screaming to get his way. When the door opened up and Jareth led Toby back into the room by the hand her suspicions were confirmed when she saw Toby rubbing his backside with his free hand while leftover tears flowed down his cheeks. He looked miserably defeated and when Sarah looked to Jareth he simply raised an eyebrow at her, looking a little defeated himself.

As Sarah held the babe in her arms and looked down upon Toby's pitiful stance she was at a loss for what to say or how to feel. She honestly wasn't against spanking, having gone through a few of her own father's light swats when she was younger, and even more of Jareth's for that matter. This was the first time Toby had received a spanking though and she felt impulses to pick him up and give him hugs and kisses. She knew she couldn't though. Jareth released Toby's hand and left him standing off to the side as he made his way to her, his cousins both moving back to make more room for him as he placed his arm around her waist and looked down at the baby in her arms. "What should we call him?" he asked, obviously wanting to take his own mind off what had just happened with Toby.

"Shouldn't Mavid name his own child?" she asked, looking to Mavid who immediately put his hands up as if warding her off and backed up a couple small steps.

"I'm just the sperm donor," he said factually.

By some miracle Sarah kept her jaw off the floor, but was stunned at such a response. No one else in the room took any pause in it though. Clora and Ishapell both stepping forward to touch at her arms again rather than the babe itself.

"Think of a strong name, something that women will think sounds nice when he's older," Clora beamed.

"What about something scholarly like Pagrian, or Guston?" Ishapell offered up.

Sarah turned to Jareth, at a loss for what to possibly name him. "Do you have any ideas?"

Jareth reached out and very carefully lifted the baby from her arms, cradling him as best and as gently as he could against his armor. The babe didn't so much as stir through the whole switch, his little eyes cracked open once more and looking around for the return of his bottle. "Let's call him Mavias, partially after his father," Jareth decided, looking up to Mavid. "Does that suit you?"

Mavid smirked before his smile turned itself into a full out grin and the shortest of laughs escaped him. "Sounds just fine Jareth. Whatever you think will help."

Sarah frowned in confusion then. "Help? What do you mean?"

Jareth continued to rock the baby in his arms, "Often children are named after other beings or things in hopes they will inherit the good traits that are associated with their name before it was theirs. Not always, but often." He smirked down in Toby's direction, who was still sniffing back the remains of his tears next to him. "With a little bit of good fortune little Jareth will take guidance in his namesake as well."

Sarah felt a shiver run through her back but suppressed her urge to speak out against that, something she found herself growing more and more tired of doing. She consoled herself by reminding herself that it was just more superstition and that being named after him didn't automatically mean that Toby would grow up to be like Jareth. He was still Toby first and foremost as far as she was concerned. She looked at the babe, now Mavias, cradled in Jareth's arms and thought about what it might be like when he and Toby were older. Others would refer to them as Jareth and Mavias… the temptation on history to repeat itself in the names alone sent another chill down her back and she tried hard to just shake it off.

"Are you cold?" Jareth asked her.

 _No, just terrified_ , "Yes."

Jareth looked around the room as if he could see the temperature. "It is a bit cold in here I suppose, your fire has nearly gone out. It is just as well though, since it will be time to retire for the night soon anyway." He turned and carefully handed Mavias off to Mavid, lifting the still sniveling Toby up onto his hip once the transfer was complete and placing a kiss against his cheek as Toby wrapped himself around his father's neck and rested against his shoulder. Sarah reached up and brushed the tear-tracks off of his face, running her hand over his cheek and forehead once she was done and Toby offered up a weak little smile.

Jareth turned back to his cousins. "Goodnight," he simply bid them, turning to Sarah then, "We need to get the children settled for the night and I'm tired as well. Say goodnight."

She pretty much had no other option but to turn and wish his cousins both a good night, so that's what she did. While she did honestly mean it, she still wished that Jareth hadn't told her to say it. She would have done so anyway, but him ordering her to do things she would have done anyway… it was like twisting the screw.

Jareth nodded his head in approval and both he and Mavid started out the door, Sarah following behind because she knew it was expected of her right now, a mostly empty milk bottle dangling from her hand.


	37. Chapter 37

There was no wet nurse, so there was no one else to watch the new babe. This was something Sarah found out right away that Jareth and Mavid expected _her_ to do. She had thrown down her defense of acting placatory towards Jareth to curse him for springing that on her and ask why Mavid couldn't take care of his own son.

He hadn't gotten angry back at her like she expected, speaking to her like he was trying to calm her down as he explained that there was no need for a wet nurse and that taking care of Mavias would be great practice for her for when they had their own child. The only thing that kept her from throwing something hard and sharp at him was that at that moment she had had the baby in her arms and she honestly wasn't about to throw _him_! She had nothing against the baby. After all, he couldn't help anything that was going on. It wasn't his fault that his mother had died during birth, or that Mavid and Jareth were thoughtless and chauvinistic, or that he cried every time he needed anything and just seemed to always need something.

Jareth and Mavid had turned to leave then, and when Sarah protested being left alone with the newborn Jareth simply waved off her concerns. "Don't worry Sarah, if anyone in this castle can care for a baby it is you. Mavid and I need tonight to prepare the castle as much as we can for the child's care and safety."

"But-"

He placed a kiss against her lips to silence her, running his hand over the newborn's forehead. "This is just for tonight Sarah, by tomorrow we should be able to move him into our room with us to make his night care easier for you."

"I'm not going to raise him by myself," she had protested, although it sounded more like a whine.

"Of course not, just watch him while Mavid and I attend to meeting his needs." Without giving her a chance to say more, he had bid her and both children goodnight and left, closing the nursery door behind him.

If someone had told Sarah how that those first couple nights with the new babe in the castle was going to go she might not have fully believed them, so there really would have been no way for anyone to prepare her for it. Mavias had been cribbed in Toby's nursery for the first night since it was the warmest place for him to be; and although Sarah had expected Toby to fuss and throw fits over it so far he had done nothing of the sort. Instead he had surprised her by wanting to help with the baby in all ways, offering to find a toy it could hold and making funny little faces at the crib side to stop Mavias from crying… and cry he did.

Sarah felt blessed that Toby was not doing anything to aggravate the situation or Mavias, because it seemed as though everything else did that plenty. He had cried twice for food and once for a change the first night he had stayed in Toby's nursery and once or twice it seemed like he cried just because. Sarah had ended up sleeping what little she could in the nursery amongst some of Toby's stuffed animals since it was far too cold in either her room or Jareth's to move him in there, but the nursery was warm and cozy and in all honesty if it hadn't been for her repeatedly being woken up by Mavias crying she could have possibly had the best sleep she had gotten in a while with no cold and no Jareth to waken her.

Toby whined every time Mavias cried that night and woke him up, but he would roll over and fall back asleep once she got to her feet to go sooth him.

The next day Jareth had been the one to wake her up, carrying her from the nursery back into his room so that she could have a proper nap before the children woke up again and she had been surprised to find that the room was almost as warm as the nursery, Jareth having stayed up most of the night using magic to make adjustments to it so that the balcony was now gone, replaced by wall and the cold had a much harder time getting through the stones. The fireplace had almost doubled its size to combat that which did manage to get in.

Far too tired to fight or resist in any useful way, Sarah had just laid there as Jareth kissed her head and praised her for taking care of the babe during the night, informing her that now that it was fit to do so they would move the child into this room with them so Sarah wouldn't have to spend her nights in the nursery till he started sleeping through the night. She might have screamed at him more if she had had the energy, but as it was her eyes had simply fluttered shut and she had fallen asleep.

X

That had been almost a week ago. The only thing that had seemed to change so far involving Mavias was that now he cried all night in their room and Sarah was no longer allowed to sleep in her own bed. The few times that Jareth had gotten up when Mavias cried was only to take him out of his crib and bring him and a bottle to her to see to. So she had spent much of her week dead tired.

They all had come to the Devine Castle for a visit today, everyone from Jareth to Torik, so that Jareth's parents and even Erib could see the newborn themselves. They had been awing over him for close to an hour already and Sarah found herself growing tired of sitting. Honestly though she was just tired in general at this point. A week of little to no sleep had that effect.

Sarah rubbed at her heavy eyelids with her free hand, holding Mavias against her shoulder as she lightly patted his back to burp him, a spit rag draped over her shoulder. She had thought Karen had forced her to help out a lot with Toby… boy was she wrong. Mavias managed to burp finally and immediately started fussing again. Sarah could feel her own lip curl as she started to rock him, humming to him to try to quiet him down. "I feel like I'm always doing something wrong because you never stop crying at me," she admitted to him, fighting off the tiredness from her voice.

"Let me try holding him then," Kaleen offered, holding her hands out to Sarah from where she sat next to her on the little loveseat. "I promise to give him back," she laughed when Sarah hesitated.

"Sarah let her hold him," Jareth ordered, giving her a pointed look from one of the other seats located in the overly refined sitting room of the Devine Castle.

Sarah bit back her urge to scowl at him since it wouldn't make any difference and probably just get her in trouble and handed over Mavias, keeping a protective eye on him as Kaleen started cooing at him and brushing her fingers over his little tummy in an effort to calm him down.

Despite his fussiness Sarah still couldn't help but have reservations about handing him off to others. Jareth and Mavid had taken him and Toby both during the day a few times, but night time care and seeing that he was washed and fed were almost always left completely up to her up till now. She hadn't been able to help forming a level of attachment to the babe with all the time spent to him. She just wished he wouldn't cry all the time, it made her feel like she was failing him somehow. That only helped to stress her out even more about this whole thing.

She wasn't the only one who had formed an attachment, for at that very moment Toby had moved himself from Jareth's lap over to Kaleen, leaning against her knees as he reminded her to hold the babe's head. Toby had been surprisingly wonderful about the new babe from the very first night. He still wanted to hold him and help out in ways he just couldn't yet, but Sarah had let him help with the babe's feeding a couple times after showing him how to do it properly. Toby had loved that. It almost seemed like he understood that Mavias was brought into the castle for him. Like a new toy that he was allowing her and Jareth to put together so that he could reap the final rewards of loving it and playing with it.

Sarah suppressed another yawn and leaned her head against her hand, her elbow propped against the couch. To her surprise nobody chided her for doing something so improper… but honestly she probably would have laughed if Jareth had scolded her for posture when sitting. Granted right now he was sitting all right and proper in his chair, discussing something with his father in that fae language of his again, but Sarah knew he much preferred to lounge about with at least one leg propped up.

"Are you alright Sarah?" Ishapelle whispered to her from her other side on the couch, trying not to draw attention.

"Just tired," Sarah whispered back. "I'm good." honestly she was too tired to put up a front of propriety.

Her attention got pulled away when Jareth suddenly turned from his father and called over to Toby, still speaking in that fae language of theirs as he said something to his son. Sarah watched as Toby turned to his father and went back over to stand next to his chair, possibly having been told to do so. Jareth, his father, Mavid and Erib were all seated around each other and Sarah bit down an impulse to call Toby away from them now that their attentions were focused on him. She could only watch though as Jareth said something to him that she didn't understand, then as King Hamold said something else.

Her heart practically clenched when Toby laughed and for some reason unknown to her lifted up his shirt to expose his belly to them, saying something back in a few of their fae words. They all chuckled at him and Mavid reached out to poke at the side of Toby's waist playfully, causing Toby to have a fit of giggles as he dropped his shirt back down and moved in front of Jareth's knees, saying something else Sarah didn't understand before Jareth lifted him back onto his lap.

Ishapelle had seen her watching this and knew that she wouldn't understand what had been said. "They were commenting on him loosing his baby fat. Toby showed them how much."

Although that had been a part of it, not knowing what they had been saying had only been the tip of the iceberg for Sarah's anxiety on this. When Toby spoke in that weird fae language with Jareth… it almost felt like he wasn't the human baby she knew anymore. He was growing more into his fae ancestry right before her eyes and she didn't like it. She would never be able to do such a thing; would always and forever be a human from the Aboveground made to live in the Underground. Toby could grow into this world yet… she was starting to feel like she never could. She still didn't really accept that this was her home now. It felt nothing like her home.

When Toby spoke in that other language though it made her realize beyond doubt that this was _his_ home.

She felt a tingle in the tip of her nose that meant she was very close to crying and she stood up quickly from next to the queen, only half excusing herself from the room before hurrying out and into the hall before anyone could question her beyond more than the looks they gave her. By the time she reached the hall a few tears had already slipped down her cheeks and she could only wipe them out of the way for the new ones that fell right behind them. She hurried down the hall, scared that someone might follow her from the room and find her like this, ducking into one of the ornate doors that was unlocked. She was thankful to find that it appeared to be an unused guest room and she leaned her back against the door as she tried to get a grip on herself.

She hadn't meant to start crying like this, she wanted only for it to stop, but the more she tried to make it the worse it got. Before she knew it she was gasping for air between her heavy sobs and had sunk halfway to the floor, unable to hold herself up. She had to stop this now! She felt so embarrassed by her unexpected reaction, wanting to slide into a hole somewhere and never come out. Even when she did stop crying she knew it would take forever for her face to rid itself of the red splotches it took on when she cried and for her eyes to stop looking glassy from the tears. One step back into the lounge room and everyone would know!

The thought of Mavid, Clora, and Hamold knowing she cried like this scared her in particular. What would Jareth say? What would the rest of them say?!

Sarah almost choked on her own gasp when there was a light tap on the door she was propped up against and she squeezed her eyes tight as her head dropped in defeat. Already she had been found out. They must have heard her sobs from out in the hall.

"Sarah," came Ishapelle's soft voice, "Will you please let me in?"

Sarah couldn't speak, she didn't trust her voice not to waver enough to do so, she didn't want to open the door though, as if that would keep the female from learning what she was doing in here.

"Sarah, please open the door. Jareth sent me to check on you. It's only me out here," she coaxed softly.

There was no fighting it. Either she could open the door and face Ishapelle, or she could not and no doubt that would force the fae to go back to get Jareth. She forced herself to her feet and opened the door a crack, but still couldn't wrangle in all her sorrows as Ishapelle stepped into the room with her, closing the door behind her when she saw the state Sarah was in. Sarah waited for whatever reaction Ishapelle had to give, figuring that she would urge her to get a hold of herself or ask her why she was upset. Ishapelle did none of those things however, and when she simply pulled Sarah to her in a comforting hug Sarah only needed a moment to overcome her shock before she clung onto the female, bawling like a baby into the female's shoulder as she stroked her hair and whispered small comforts to her in a way that was so much like Jareth and at the same time completely different.

They stood like that for a long time, or what seemed like it to Sarah anyway. She managed to reduce her sobs to mere sniffles with Ishapelle comforting her as best she could. "I m-miss m-m-my home," Sarah gasped out as she fought to control the last bought of tears she had in her.

"I'm sorry," Ishapelle whispered to her calmly, continuing to hold her. "I wish this was more like the world you came to us from for your own sake, and I know this world could never replace yours… but there are those here that do care about you, even though it might not always seem that way." She pulled back a little and Sarah let her, thankful when Ishapelle fished out her kerchief, dabbing at the tears on Sarah's cheeks before handing it over to her. Sarah managed to control her breathing back into something more normal as she wiped at her eyes.

Those that cared about her… she supposed so, obviously Toby, and she was willing to see now that Ishapelle did, Jareth seemed to have his moments honestly. She let out a defeated sigh and handed Ishapelle back her kerchief, her fit over and done with now and leaving her feeling even more tired than she had been before. She just wanted to lay down and never get out of bed again right now. She certainly wasn't any happier than she had been before, but she wasn't sobbing uncontrollably so that was something in her favor she supposed.

Her mind drifted back to Mavias crying all night and keeping her up and she fought the urge to slump with everything she had. He had still been fussing when she had left the room. "Is Mavias still crying?" she asked, knowing how random it probably sounded to Ishapelle given what had just happened.

"He had stopped when I came to find you. I think Mavid was holding him."

Sarah nodded her head in understanding, still thinking about how wonderful a nap would be right now. "Do I look like I've been crying?" she asked, already knowing the answer.

"We can wait in her another minute or two. We'll say we had to take care of womanly business. Males never question that sort of thing if they don't have to."

That coaxed a very small smile to Sarah's lips. "Ishapelle… thank you."

X

Something was very off about her, something wrong. Jareth was willing to place money down that she had cried when they had visited the Devine Castle, but when he had asked her about it after they had left she had completely closed up on him and refused to acknowledge it. He had taken the cue to not press her on it, not really needing verbal confirmation at that point. After arriving back at the castle though she had simply taken both Mavias and Toby without comment or complaint and led them to the nursery to get them both changed from the trip and ready for supper.

Jareth watched from the doorway to the nursery, leaning against the frame as he watched Sarah fasten the snaps on Toby's green vest, Mavias was already changed, wiped down, and was currently resting in Toby's crib. "I'm hungy!" Toby whined, bouncing a little to hinder Sarah's progress.

"Hold still and you can eat soon," she said, even her tone sounding more hushed and subdued than Jareth had ever heard it before. It was like she didn't know he was standing there… like she barely knew Toby was standing right in front of her. Like she wasn't really in the room at all. Jareth didn't like it, and wasn't sure what to do about it. The sound of footsteps in the hall pulled his attention and he looked up from Sarah and his son to see Mavid coming down the hall towards him.

"Are we about ready? Supper was to be served a few minutes ago," the male pointed out.

Jareth nodded his head in agreement, but offered no solution as he turned back to his wife and child. Toby was just about done, Sarah hadn't changed out of her traveling dress though. He stepped up to her, feeling uncertain about his approach almost as though he were coming up on a wild faun and didn't want to scare it. "Sarah, how about I finish getting the boys ready and you go change into one of your dinner dresses?" he suggested.

Sarah made no protests, keeping uncharacteristically quiet as she simply dropped Toby's trousers back to the ground in front of him and left the room, Mavid staring after her in confusion when she didn't even so much as glare at him. Jareth watched too till she had closed the door to her room softly behind her across the hall. He then turned and stooped down in front of Toby, having him lay on his back so he could slip his pants on. "Mommy?" Toby asked, as though he also could tell something was wrong. Maybe he could.

"What's the matter with her?" Mavid asked offhandedly, going over to the crib to run his fingers over his own son's face and head.

Jareth was just about to say he didn't know when an ear shattering scream erupted from across the hall, causing everyone in the nursery to about jump out of their skins.

The scream was closely followed by a loud BANG from something and in less than a second Mavid had unsheathed a dagger and run out of the nursery to Sarah's room where the commotion had come from. Jareth swooped Toby up and deposited him in the crib with Mavias just as Toby started to cry from his fright and he hurried after Mavid, slamming the door to the nursery shut behind him just as Mavid pushed in the door to Sarah's room.

Jareth jumped once more when another of her screams spilled out at them, wordless but for the emotions that formed the horrid noise, and another loud BANG was closely followed by the sound of something shattering.

"Gods!" Mavid swore as he plowed into the room, Jareth running up his heels. They both stopped inside the door at the sight they were greeted with, too stunned for so much as thoughts.

From her screams Jareth had thought her to be in trouble of life-threatening measures… but that was in no way the case. She completely ignored their presence (or possibly hadn't noticed them at all) as she hollered like a woman possessed and ran through her already disheveled room in only her under-things, knocking things from her vanity before pulling down the vanity itself. The mirror shattered all over the floor to join the ripped up books and splintered sitting chair.

Jareth could feel his own jaw drop when she ran deeper into her closet then, tearing at her dresses and throwing about her shoes and jewelry as tears and sweat pored down her face. She had gone mad! She was absolutely hell bent on destroying everything!

Mavid looked back to Jareth, completely lost as to what he should do and Jareth had nothing to offer him that would be in any way reassuring. When Sarah let out another shriek that could have made a banshee cringe and started snapping apart pieces of her jewelry, completely ignoring the cuts the stones were slicing into her hands and the subsequent blood that was running down to her elbows and onto the floor and mess, Jareth rushed forward and acted on pure instinct as he wrapped his arms around her waist from behind her, pinning her arms to her sides in an effort to restrain her as she continued to fight against him and scream out her anger and sadness. She was saying something now but he couldn't understand it through her fits.

Mavid stepped forward to help Jareth restrain her, but Jareth pushed him away, almost losing his hold on Sarah in the process as she turned around to face him, her hand coming down sharp and hard against his cheek.

Jareth ignored it as though it had been nothing, recapturing her hands so she couldn't do it again. Something in her seemed to break after she slapped him though and she suddenly lost her will to keep up the tirade, her screams dwindling to mere sobs as she sank down to the floor, Jareth dragging her out of the closet with a sharp yank so she avoided the glass. He eased her down as slowly as he could manage as she crumpled to the floor on top of the torn books and dresses and a bit of a shelf, crying into her hands as her body took up the fetal position.

Jareth exchanged lost looks with Mavid, who was still beyond stunned as he stared down at Sarah's shaking body. His dagger was still held loosely in one of his hands, completely forgotten.

"Go check on the boys," Jareth barked at him, able to hear both the babes crying back in their nursery now that Sarah was silent.

"You'll be alright?" Mavid asked, keeping his attention on Sarah even though he spoke to Jareth.

"Fine, now go," Jareth sighed.

Mavid never pulled his eyes away from Sarah till he closed the door to her room behind him.

Now left alone, the room was destroyed and quiet but for the sounds of Sarah's soft sobs beneath him. Jareth's cheeked burned like fire and he thought maybe she had kicked him in the shin at some point in the struggle too since that was starting to ache as well. Jareth couldn't bring himself to feel any anger for any of this though… yet. "What happened?" he asked, placing his hand on her shoulder, feeling the shakes from her sobs vibrate through it up his arm. "What… what happened Sarah?" It was the only thing going through his mind to ask right then.

Sarah continued to cry for a few moments, shaking her head dismally as she did so. "You're taking everything from me," she finally managed to squeak out between her sobs.

Jareth was about ready to do some screaming of his own then, having been through this with her one too many times, but then she continued.

"I have almost nothing left to remember where I'm from, nothing left from my old life in the Aboveground. I did have Toby, but he's not… not human. He's half fae, and not something I can keep with me from the Aboveground like I thought he was; like I had counted on him being. He's starting to s-speak fae and use magic, and now there's another baby who looks and seems human in every way but he's not e-e-either. He's even more fae than Toby and it constantly taunts me that he'll grow to do the s-same things. I… I've tried to accept that I'll n-never leave here. I know that. I'll never leave the Underground ever again… but I wasn't ready to give up everything about the Aboveground that I love! I have nothing left of it," she sobbed, her voice still no more than a whisper. "I don't even have a resemblance of the things I had there anymore. I had friends, I had hobbies… I had the ability to leave the house if I wanted to. I don't have that here. I want those things back! I was a child in my world. Now in this one I suddenly have to be a woman. I just cant do that overnight! I- I've tried to be brave and act grown up like everyone expects me to and thinks I should, but I'm not there yet, I'm just not! I'm only eighteen! Now I have to be a mother to two babes and everyone expects me to just be able to manage it no problem and… and…" she broke down into sobs again, unable to go on.

Jareth couldn't leave her to wallow in her self-pity, moving some of her hair out of her face so she could look at him. "Sarah, don't do this. Don't upset yourself like this." She continued to cry and he had no clue what he could say to her to help. A part of him knew that she was just blowing off what had obviously been a building storm of steam and that it would pass, but he would need to find some way to help or these feelings would just build up in her again and unleash once more at some point.

Jareth shoved some of the debris out of his way with his boot and scooped Sarah up in his arms, cradling her to him when her cries hitched. "W-what are you doing?" she sobbed pitifully, her body tense as though she were expecting a punishment now.

"Putting you to bed," Jareth whispered to her. "I want you to get plenty of sleep tonight, I know you've been lacking it. We can talk about the rest tomorrow." She didn't fight him at all when he carried her through to his room, which was much warmer than hers was now that Jareth had changed it, and laid her out on the bed. Sarah continued to sniffle and her face was stained with the blood from her hands, which thankfully had stopped bleeding but the blood still remained on her arms. "I'll be sending Aboris up to tend to your wounds," he told her softly as he pulled his comfiest blanket up over her.

She gave no response but he knew that she had heard him.

He hesitated a moment before bending down to place a kiss against her blood stained cheek. "Sleep well."

She nodded her head once, closing her eyes right away and Jareth took one last look at the state of her before shaking his head in astonishment and leaving the room. He had truly never expected for anything like that to happen… although now that it had he wondered over the fact that it hadn't happened sooner. He also couldn't help but wonder over what Sarah had said to him, about how she had nothing from her world left. He had thought that the charms of the Underground would be more than enough to sustain her, but they weren't… at least…. Not the ones she had been exposed to thus far.

Mavid came out into the hall, the nursery quiet behind him. "What in the name of all Seelie was that?!" he demanded.

"Nothing," Jareth sighed.

"Witch spit!" Mavid huffed back. "I just watched with my own eyes as that little-"

He didn't get to finish that sentence because Jareth slammed his forearm across the slightly shorter male's neck and clavicle and shoved him against the wall. Dead serious when he spoke. "You saw nothing, understand? You heard nothing and saw nothing. So you will also speak of nothing."

The breakdown Sarah had just had… Jareth would not allow her pain to be shared around the castle like some amusing joke. While there were times where she needed humility and admonishment for her reckless actions, this was not one of those instances and Jareth could see the difference. Right now she needed rest and healing. There was no doubt in his mind now that what had happened earlier at the Devine Castle had been just a forewarning or a pre-eruption to what had just happened and he had for the most part ignored it. Tomorrow when she was calmer they would talk, but not tonight.

Mavid narrowed his eyes at Jareth, clearly not understanding. "This is you now? She acts out and you turn a blind eye."

"I know better than anyone else what happens when she starts 'acting out' against me. This is not one of those times."

Mavid cocked a brow in disbelief, but said nothing of protest out loud.

"Not a word about what just happened to anybody Mavid. Do you understand me?"

Reluctantly, Mavid nodded his head in agreement.

X

"Superficial really, wont be with you more than another day or two. By tomorrow they shouldn't even hurt anymore." Aboris assured her, snipping the gauze off and taping it down on her injured hand, her other one already seen too. Sarah wasn't really paying attention to what he was doing, or really listening to him as he informed her that there would be no scars left. Scars were not even on her mind and she knew they never would be. She kept thinking about it, what had happened. She could scarcely believe that she had done that, even though she knew she had. She could still faintly feel the fabrics in her clothes tearing apart in her fingers, and the minor satisfactions that brought to her.

She had just felt so hopelessly sad ever since her first cry fest in front of Ishapelle. She knew she had been closed off, trying not to feel sad by not letting herself feel anything for a little while. After she had gone to her room to change she simply removed her top dress, something she had gotten used to doing by now, and had been about to select a dinner dress when she had noticed the full length mirror she had been standing by. Like some sort of living zombie Sarah remembered she had gone over and looked at herself in it, her mind thoughtless as she stared at a reflection she barely recognized. With her clothes and painted face, bound up hair and gaudy jewels she had looked like a stranger to herself, just some woman standing in her refined closet, her face the picture of sadness. That wasn't who she was now… it couldn't have been. It had to be some sort of tricky mirror, she had thought to herself at the time. She had moved her arms around, but the image in the mirror imitated everything she did so exactly. It _was_ her!

Sarah had taken her hair down right away, rubbing at the makeup on her face to try to find herself underneath. The picture in her mind of herself when she stood before the goblin king to claim Toby after the Labyrinth looking nothing like the woman who stood before her in the mirror, but when she had looked up to the mirror after removing the cover-ups it still didn't look like her. She wasn't able to just wipe away some mask that made her look like this. She was starting to look like a woman from nature and time taking their course and there was no turning back the clock to what she was familiar with. She didn't even know herself anymore. She was losing herself. She couldn't seem to keep anything from the life she had loved in the Aboveground… not even herself!

She only vaguely remembered what had happened after that, slamming the mirror to the ground and shattering the glass like that would kill off the woman inside of it that had claimed to be her, but it didn't of course, the broken shards reflecting up to her that her plan had of course failed and she still looked like the sad stranger. Her anger had blinded her and she had set off to destroy everything that had changed her, the clothes and jewels and room that were all meant for the reflection in the mirror, that had changed her into what she had seen! It had made sense to her at the time and it had felt good, really good. Especially when she had smacked Jareth across the face. He was the biggest reason she couldn't recognize herself. Her hand warmed at the memory and she clenched it around the gauze as Aboris sponged the last of the blood off of her face.

"I'm going to give you some powder to hold on your tongue," he told her, it will help you get some rest.

She allowed him to uncork a vial of greenish dust and he poured a little out into her mouth. It matted on her tongue like sand and Sarah sucked at it rather than swallowing it.

Sarah eventually fell asleep thinking about how she had destroyed the vanity table.

X

Since she had missed supper the night before Sarah had welcomed it when breakfast was brought to her, not minding for once that Jareth brought it to her. He had helped her out of her corset and hoes, but she had been comfortable enough in her underwear to leave those on. How she had managed to sleep in those other things he had no clue, but could only guess that she had been more than extremely tired in order to do so. They had not spoken about last night yet, neither of them mentioning it now. Jareth had used his magic to vanish the destroyed bits of the mess Sarah created in her room off into the Hills of Waste and clearing the mess from the rest of it. He had also removed the little window in her room, which helped immensely with the chill. There was no sign today that anything horrible had ever taken place there but for the half empty closet and lack of most any kind of furniture. Those could be replaced, though he wasn't sure it would be a good idea to do so right away. So that Sarah could get a proper rest Jareth had kept Mavias in the nursery with Toby and had spent the night with them so that he could see to it when the babe would wake up. He hoped that she seriously appreciated that he had given up his bed and his sleep to lay among a pile of stuffed animals on the floor of his son's nursery.

Jareth watched as Sarah ate her breakfast without comment, scooping up more of her food with her spoon. She had a bowl of assorted fruits both familiar and foreign to her, and she ate it all without question or hesitation. Though she was doing better now, Jareth hadn't been willing to chance giving her a fork or knife just yet. A slight bruise had already formed on his cheekbone just from where she had slapped him, looking more like a shadow under his eye. Now sitting this close to her on the bed of his room he had only been willing to trust her with a spoon.

After a little while longer it was Sarah who finally broke the silence. "I…I'm sorry about last night. It sounds too cliché to say I don't know what came over me, but it's kinda true. One minute I was in front of my mirror, and the next I was just filled with rage."

Jareth was rather stunned by that, he hadn't expected her to apologize for it. He could tell she meant it though. He took the chance to reach out and brush some of the hair from her face. She let him. "Don't fret over it Sarah. No one knows what happened, not even Aboris unless _you_ told him. I simply told him you had an accident and needed some cuts on your hands seen to."

She put her now empty plate off onto the side table, still looking tired even though she had slept way in this morning. It was honestly nearing lunchtime.

Jareth moved the tray further from the bed and moved closer to Sarah's side. "Sarah what happened?" he asked, trying to keep most of the demand from his voice. That question had been plaguing him all night though.

She simply shrugged, "I don't know. I've been feeling depressed for a while now, I guess I didn't realize how much," she muttered, playing with the corner of the blanket.

He wasn't going to let her slip by with that. "Can you tell me why you left my parents sitting room yesterday to go cry?" When she had come back it had been obvious that that was the case, her eyes puffy and glassy and her cheeks stained red.

She looked him straight in the eye then. "I don't want Toby to speak fae!" she blurted out.

That stunned him for a moment. He had suspected something to do with Mavias. "The pristine language?"

"I didn't know you were teaching it to him and I don't like him knowing it. I got upset because it just seemed like one more thing for the universe to shove in my face to remind me that he's not human and he has a place down here."

"Sarah there is no getting around this, I wont stop teaching him the pristine language. Toby _is_ half fae and will grow into monarchy and as such he _must_ be able to communicate with others of the fae race. There are some elder ones that refuse to speak any other language but the pristine one, for fear of their last words being in another tongue."

Her scowl didn't let up, but she didn't fight the issue more. So either she accepted it or she was closing up again. Jareth reached out and took her hand. "If I could stop for your sake I would Sarah, but Toby must learn this for _his_ own sake. Mavias will learn it too."

"Could I learn it then?" she asked, catching him completely off guard.

He had never expected that question from her, and was hard pressed to answer her truthfully. "I apologize Sarah, but no you may not. I can not and would not teach you."

Her scowl deepened then. "W-why? Wouldn't that be something that could help me too?"

"It would do you more harm to speak it I'm afraid. The pristine language is considered such because it is only the fae that know it. No other species may speak it and if they try they will be punished," he stated factually.

Sarah continued to scowl as she snapped her head away from him to glare at the wall. "That's so… stupid."

The way she had said it, Jareth couldn't help the slight laugh that escaped him. At the sound Sarah actually seemed to relax a little in her spot, her arms uncrossing to simply sit on her lap.

"Dr. Dee will be coming to visit you in a few nights time, I believe he has an opinion on that as well. You two can snarl about it together if you wish."

Sarah's interest perked up at that and she turned to face him again, her eyebrow raised. "You're going to let me see someone who has an opinion? Really?" her tone bordered on teasing, but he knew she was only slightly doing so.

Jareth smirked back at her. "You'll find that Dr. Dee has a great many of them."

A small smile actually pulled at her lips at that and Jareth felt relieved to see it. He leaned forward and placed a kiss against her cheek, pleased when she allowed him to. "You've been taking good care of Mavias, by the way. Mavid knows it too."

"I don't really have any other choice," Sarah replied, her voice clipped enough to get Jareth's attention.

"Is there something you would like to say now?" he asked her, his own tone lowered as though he were preparing for a fight. Jareth realized it and pulled himself out of the defensive.

Sarah paused only a moment before speaking up. "I just wish you would have warned me it would be this way. You didn't tell me that it would be _me_ taking care of Mavias while everyone else sleeps though the night. He is Mavid's child. I don't see why he cant help out."

"I didn't think it was something that would surprise you at all," Jareth huffed, "Even in the Aboveground isn't it women that see to newborns? And who else in this castle has more experience with a child? If you were taken by surprise that you would be helping than it is because you did not bother to think about the obvious at all."

"I'm not helping, I'm doing everything! I'm the one staying up all night with him, I'm the one who prepares the bottles for him and changes him! I'm the one he's always crying at! Toby never cried that much."

Jareth had to reign back his anger before he answered that one. "I assure you that you are not doing _everything_. Let's first address what you _are_ doing, however. You are correct that you are the one staying up at night with him, but you are also the only one out of Mavid and I that doesn't do anything for the kingdom during the day. Mavid and I need our sleep to keep this place running and you have not learned anything to help us with that task yet. I would not leave Mavid's child and Toby's attendant in the care of Ishapelle or Clora because although they are cousins of mine, they are still fae and there are certain base instincts we have when it comes to obtaining children. I will not put the temptation before them. You do stay up at night, but you also sleep in till the early afternoon because of it… the only person in this castle who does that by the way… even though you still get a solid half-nights sleep every night despite Mavias's best efforts. The crying isn't something he can help, he has colic. Sometimes he is going to cry for no other reason than he has some pains. He will grow out of it."

Sarah's challenging eyes finally lowered from his a bit but he wasn't done yet, his temper stabbed from being informed he was doing nothing about the new babe. "Now should we discuss what you _don't_ do in regards to that child? It is Mavid and I that take him into the study with us on those days that you just seem a little extra tired, even though we get next to no work done with both him and Toby in there. We have both changed at least several of his diapers and fed him several bottles. I am the one having more bottles brought into the castle, and importing anything through the labyrinth is a task in of itself. I am also the one who personally prepared whole sections of the castle to be safe and comfortable and goblin free for both the children and you, despite the extra headaches the goblins have presented me for it. The further they get pushed away from the kitchens the crabbier they get. They know there is a new baby in the castle and their curiosity is peaked by it. A quarter of my job these days is making sure they cant get near it."

Sarah's eyes snapped to his then and she actually looked worried, "Would they try to hurt Mavias?!"

Jareth shook his head. "Even goblins know how precious children are, but they may try to take him to trade him around for more karbobs or something."

Sarah relaxed back a little against her pillow, but only a little.

There was something else that Jareth didn't get a chance to ask her about before this, but it was heavy on his mind. He turned the subject to it now. "What set you off Sarah? You said you were in front of your mirror than angry. What was it?"

She hesitated for a moment, but answered before Jareth could start to press her, which he certainly would have done. "I was staring at myself in the mirror and… I didn't like what I saw I guess. Its going to sound stupid trying to explain it. All I can tell you though is that I looked in the mirror and I didn't see _me_ anymore, I didn't see the same girl I used to be and I guess it scared me. It made me mad too because I didn't even realize it had happened so… its almost like finding out someone you knew was dead and you never got to say goodbye at all. That's how I felt. It may have been time for me to leave my childhood behind… but I didn't get to say goodbye."

Her eyes were glassing over and Jareth could hear the strain creeping into her voice that warned him she was getting emotional. He supposed he could understand her distress, but at the same time it seemed like just a growing pain to him. Everyone got scared when it was time to act and be seen as an adult. Although it had happened a very very long time ago for him, he could still vaguely remember times that he had worried about it too, that the thought of leaving his parent's castle had terrified him more than once. After all, what if he had failed? What if he had made a mess of things in the kingdom he had come to rule over? What if someone challenged his authority. They were all worries that Jareth had overcome or faced with success. There had been no fail option.

Sarah would see that too, like everyone else who became an adult she would have no other choice. He knew she would be fine, even if she had severely serious doubts right now.

Jareth didn't say all these things, pulling Sarah up against him from the bed and to his surprise when he held her to him and whispered to her that everything would be alright she wrapped her arms tightly around him in response, burying her face in the crook of his neck. He could feel the wetness from her tears running down over his clavicle and pulled slightly back, tipping her face gently up to him so he could kiss every one of the tears off of her cheeks, the salty wetness entering his mouth as he petted her arms and hair.

It wasn't very long before her tears slowed and eventually stopped all together. Her sadness subsiding at least momentarily. Jareth placed one last kiss against her mouth, thinking to keep it chaste. It actually startled him for a moment when Sarah grabbed the back of his head and pulled it against hers as she deepened the kiss, leaving Jareth stunned as this was the first time she had done that. Her other arm wrapped around the back of his shoulders and he felt himself pulled with her as she lay back down on the bed. He didn't fight her, but he hardly moved of his own for fear of causing this to stop. Her tongue stroked over his own and Jareth felt a pang of lust shoot straight between his legs, Sarah's soft body hidden from his by only a thin sheet that seemed to tease him by allowing him to feel every curve of her without actually being able to touch her. His erection became cradled against her hip and he couldn't help but move slightly against it, the little sparks of pleasure clouding his mind as his hands moved over the sheet that covered her breasts. He could feel the little buds there responding to him, but he insisted on seeing them, forcing himself to pull back so that he could strip the blanket from her.

"Undress," Sarah whispered to him, surprising him again with a first.

Jareth complied because he knew she was absolutely right and quickly removed his clothes, eager to get back in the bed with his wife and see where this took them. As he did this, Jareth was aware that Sarah was staring at his body, her eyes heavy on him like she were judging a piece of food. She slipped off her own underwear and when he was fully nude he came back to the bed, throwing the blanket out of the way and positioning himself between Sarah's legs, but she brought both her right hand and leg up and pushed against his side like she wanted him to move off of her. Jareth hesitated, unsure why she would want that.

"Lay on your back," she told him, clearly expecting no argument.

Jareth hesitated again, however, unsure if he should put himself in a position that was as vulnerable as that when Sarah was acting like she never had before. It was obvious to him that she was desperately seeking comfort, that she was probably unaware that she was deciding to use him in order to feel pleasure again.

"Lay down," she coaxed again "Please," and this time he complied, moving to the middle of the bed to lay on his back next to her, his hard length sitting against his lower stomach and both clenched when Sarah got up and kneeled between his legs.

Jareth felt his eyes grow wider when Sarah's eyes focused on him there and he knew what she planned to do even before her lips touched him, the sensitive nerves jolting as she wrapped her hand around the base of him and guided him straight up. Fear laced his excitement and held him immobile as he watched her take him into her mouth. His eyes rolling into the back of his head for that first lick of her tongue as the suction of her mouth sealed over his tip and Jareth couldn't hold back the feral sound that invoked from him as he laid his head back. Sarah continued to lick and suckle him, moving her hand over him gently and firmly. Leaving him moaning and sighing from the pleasure.

It made him yearn to flip her over and return the favor, but she soon released his cock and moved up to his hips, straddling his waist and he found he could only watch as she guided him into her, moving slowly and Jareth felt more shocks shoot through him as he watched every last inch enter her till he was all the way in. At that point Sarah paused and he watched her as she mewed over him, her eyes closed and her hands on his chest for balance as her body adjusted for him, obviously liking the way it felt to her. She was wet and hot and softly squeezing him from the inside as she simply sat there, but when she started to rise off his hips before coming back down a harsh gasp escaped Jareth at the unthinkable pleasure and he gripped her hips hard between his hands, helping her as Sarah set a rhythm that drove them both wild. Her hips rolled as she moved over him and he wondered if he would last more than a few moments with what it was doing to him. Her head was thrown back and her long loose hair just barely brushed his thighs, tickling them gently as hot softness gripped and stroked over his shaft. He watched as Sarah's breasts bounced with every movement and he didn't fight his desire to reach up and cup them, running his fingers over the already erect nips as Sarah moaned over him.

She started to speed up the pace, her moans getting deeper as she rode him harder. Jareth looked up at the mirror overhead and could only watch in awe as she bucked her hips over him. In the mirror he could see the expression of pure pleasure on her face, her eyes cracked open and her mouth agape as she moaned. He realized that she was also looking at the mirror, watching herself as she worked him for her orgasm.

"Faster," she moaned up at the mirror, obviously talking to him.

Jareth didn't even think to disobey her though, gripping her hips to hold her in place as his hips started to piston against her. She cried out, but not from pain and he watched the mirror to see her eyes close tight and her jaw clench. Her whole body tensed and her nails scraped the skin of his shoulders before she let out a particularly long moan and a shudder rippled through her whole body all the way down to her sex and the slight vibration was enough to send Jareth over the edge, joining her in her orgasm. If she realized that he was coming inside her, she didn't protest against it this time. She was too caught up in her own post sex bliss to be bothered to care about something like that now, and Jareth certainly wasn't going to remind her.

X

Sarah let out sigh of relief and thanked whoever was looking out for her as she pulled some things out from under the bathroom sink. She had started her period today, which she was unendingly thankful for. The last thing she needed was another baby and she had been starting to grow worried. After she got things taken care of she went back to the mirrored wall and looked at herself in it. Today it didn't set her off, she merely examined herself in the mirror. She took in the darkness under her eyes from her lack of sleep and the way she was starting to wear the dresses and shoes more comfortably. She had on one of the few dresses that had survived her and she was starting to look like she was filling them out more in the ways that a grown woman would.

Since yesterday she actually didn't feel any happier or particularly accepting, but she no longer saw the point in fighting it tooth and nail either. It was a losing battle, and she was feeling very battle worn these days. Sarah let out a sigh and left the private bath. She had slept in later today since she had once more been up with Mavias the night before. She went over to the crib that housed him on the other side of her and Jareth's bed, where he had been sleeping (or rather crying) since that first night. Since Jareth told her that he had colic, however, his cries had become a lot easier to swallow because now she at least knew it wasn't because she was doing anything wrong with him. That actually _did_ help.

In one of his rare moments of quiet, Mavias was currently curled up partially on his back and side, watching her make her way over to him. Sarah couldn't help but smile softly at him as she leaned against the rail of the crib. He really did look adorable. "Good morning, are you ready to get up for the day too?"

His only response was to continue staring at her but she took it for an affirmative and reached down into the crib to pull him out. Mavias actually reached up towards her with his little hands and Sarah paused in her surprise. He had never done that before and she felt a little tug at her heart as she scooped him up and he started to fuss very gently against her shoulder, his little hand gripping and releasing against the skin of her collar bone.

She carried him with her across the hall to the nursery, walking in to find Toby wasn't in there. That could only mean he was with Jareth then. Sarah went ahead and fed and changed Mavias in what had become sort of a routine for her, so she didn't put much thought into it. After she got him to burp and wiped the spit up from his lip with a spit-rag she sat in the rocking chair and just rocked and held him for a while, letting him suck his thumb as she sang a lullaby softly to him. She was so busy with looking at the features of his face, tracing his little brow with her forefinger softly, that she didn't notice anyone had entered the room till she saw boots on the floor in front of her and fought to hide her sneer with some effort.

"What is it Mavid?" she asked, looking to the door to see if Jareth was with him and seeing that he wasn't.

Mavid's eyes flicked down to his child in her arms but he didn't dwell. "You're to come with me to see Jareth," he informed her.

She looked down at the babe in her arms too and saw that he was staring up at his father with his blue eyes just as bright as Mavid's were deep. He wasn't reaching for him or fussing for him in anyway though, looking up at Mavid like he was simply taking in anything else that was placed in his line of sight. He still had yet to make solid connections to the relationships of anyone around him and Sarah wondered if Mavias even knew what Mavid was to him.

She got up from the chair and rested the babe against her shoulder, placing her hand protectively over the back of his head as she stood. "Did you want to hold him?" she asked.

Mavid surprised her when he shook his head no. "You would do better to hold him. We'll be passing through areas open to goblins on our way to the stables and I can better protect with my hands free."

Now she didn't feel offended by his not wanting to hold his own son, but that was certainly surprising to her. "The stables? Are we going somewhere?" the last time she had been near the stables had been when climbing on a carriage out front of it in order to stay at the Devine Castle for a few days.

"You'll find out."

"I'm not following you if that's all you're going to give me," she hissed at him stubbornly.

His had already started to the door, but his head whipped back around at her defiance and it didn't even faze her when he glared at her. The staring match that lasted a few moments after that actually bored Sarah, but she held her glare. Mavid didn't scare her. As much as he sometimes liked to pretend otherwise he had no power over her and she had come to realize that as one of the perks of being queen. She liked little moments like this when she got to remind him of that too.

Finally he let out a huff and turned to face her. "I'm not allowed to say more than that."

She gave him a disbelieving look.

"I'm really not. Jareth… he's trying to surprise you." Mavid relented.

That alone surprised her. She frowned in confusion, but cautiously followed Mavid out of the nursery and through the halls in the direction of the stables. There were indeed a couple goblins out in the halls they passed through, and at these points she stuck closer to Mavid and held Mavias just a little tighter to her. The goblins did little more than just stand and stare till they were out of sight though. There was one that had started to follow them though, his beady eyes focused on Sarah's back and she had started to grow nervous just before Mavid turned and bluff-charged the goblin, causing it to scream and run away laughing and Mavid continued on, cussing to himself about how annoying they all were.

They reached the stables without further incident from the goblins, Jareth and Toby were already waiting there for them. Jareth was showing Toby one of the Pegasus ponies, holding him up so that Toby could better see into the stall. He actually only seemed vaguely interested in the creature. Jareth set his son down when they arrived and Sarah didn't protest when he took Mavias out of her arms and held him in one, using his free arm around her own waist to pull her to him for a small kiss. "Good morning Precious," he greeted her, a smile playing around his face.

Sarah felt almost leery of his positive mood. "Good morning."

"I have a present for you today," he told her cheerily. Sarah could only watch and wait as he shifted Mavias and dug into his jacket pocket, pulling out a small ornate bag and handing it over to her.

She took it and could guess right away what was in it, but she opened it up anyway and spilled just a few of the brightly colored jewels into her hand, watching as even in the dimmed light of the stables they glittered in fabulous reds, blues, and yellows. She guessed that these would either become new jewelry for her, or that she was about to visit his mother for another 'shopping' gala to replace the things she had destroyed the previous night. That would explain the reason they were in the stables a bit more anyway if she would need a coach to transport everything back in. Sarah asked him if that was the purpose of the jewels but Jareth shook his head 'no' to her surprise. "While that opportunity will come soon I'm sure, that is not the gift you are receiving today."

Sarah looked back down at the jewels in her hand. "What are these for then?"

Jareth simply gave her a sly smirk and turned away from her, going down to a stall at the very back of the stable. Mavid followed him down and Sarah took Toby's hand in hers to join them. She could easily see upon nearing them that the last stall was filled with a bunch of old junk and discarded horse equipment. She didn't understand why Jareth was opening up the swing door to it. He and Mavid stepped back from in front of it, Jareth reaching out with the arm that didn't hold Mavias to pull Sarah aside as well, and she in turn pulled Toby back in confusion.

"What?" Toby asked, looking up at her expectantly like she would know.

She turned to ask Jareth that very thing when he gave her a mischievous wink and turned back to the junk heap, pressing his lips together and whistling as though he were calling a dog or something. One old bucket fell off of the pile, and then the whole mass started to shake and clamber apart and Sarah pulled Toby back a little further in fear when something that looked oddly like a very large beetle made out of metal and cloth and loose bits of junk the size of a station wagon uncurled itself, revealing that it was itself most of the junk in there and climbed out of the stable of it's one accord, it's six metal legs moving it out to stand before them. It didn't move further, obviously waiting for something and Sarah could only stare with her mouth agape and a death grip on Toby's hand. "W-what is it?" Although the ponies hadn't interested Toby, this moving… thing certainly did and he was pulling against her to try to get closer to it. She of course held firm though. "Toby no!"

"Wanna see!" Toby insisted.

"This is just another form I have for transportation." Jareth smirked with pride.

She was done with the guessing game bull. "Jareth what's going on?" she demanded, her patience on it's last string as she pulled Toby back.

"I've arranged a little shopping trip for you. I think it will do you some good to get out of the castle for a little while, and this is a surprise I think you will very much enjoy. Mavid will assist you and I will watch over the children while you two are gone."

She never expected any of this. "You're not coming with me?" she asked, feeling dumbfounded. Unless she was with his mother she had never been allowed off the grounds without him.

Jareth moved Mavias around in his arms and stepped around Mavid to get closer to her. Taking her right hand in his and running his thumb over the back of her signet ring his face turned grim for a moment and Sarah held back her gasp when he easily slipped it off her finger for the first time since he had placed it there. After all the times she had yanked and tore at it without managing so much as a budge he had removed it so easily, placing it in his jacket pocket. "It's safer for you to not wear this for now." Jareth simply said, "But you will wear it again as soon as you return."

"I don't understand," Sarah protested, suddenly feeling exposed without it for some reason she didn't even fully understand. She rubbed her fingers against each other, feeling the absence of the ring.

Jareth placed a kiss against her cheek and then another against her lips and ran his free hand over her cheek. "Well if you did that would ruin the surprise wouldn't it," he smirked arrogantly, tugging on a loose strand of her hair.

Sarah was about to protest further, but decided against it. Watching as the mechanical beetle opened up it's wing covers to reveal it was hollow inside. "Make sure you mind Mavid." Jareth ordered her, taking Toby's hand from hers. "Stay with him at all times and I'll see you before too long when you return."

She didn't understand, she didn't understand why only she and Mavid were going, or why she couldn't wear the ring, or why she wasn't as nervous as she probably should have been. A part of her was excited for the chance of an adventure, and although Jareth was taking precautions, it was highly unlikely that he would put her in danger. She quickly stooped down and kissed Toby goodbye, telling him to mind his father in the same manner that Jareth had just done with her. Then stroked Mavias's cheek and kissed his forehead before she even really realized that she had meant to do so.

Jareth said something to Mavid in his 'pure language' and ignored the scowl it brought to Sarah's face. Mavid nodded his head and muttered something back, stepping up to Sarah and holding his hand out to her. She didn't really have another option but to take it, allowing him to lead her past Jareth and the children and over to the beetle.

"I go too?" Toby asked.

Sarah didn't look back when she heard Jareth answer him in fae speak again. Mavid helped her up into the beetles hollowed out back, instructing her that she would have to practically lay down. She looked over to Jareth and he nodded his head in confirmation.

"It tunnels under the ground, dearest. You and Mavid can only fit in the casing if you duck down."

She complied, fighting the urge to shove him when Mavid climbed in with her, accidentally laying his elbow on her hair for a moment as he shifted around. It was cramped and she was very uncomfortable with Mavid scooting in to lay next to her, though he seemed to be trying not to touch her either. The shell of the beetle closed in on them and they were cast into pure darkness. Sarah suddenly became nervous and gasped when she felt the beetle start to move with her inside of it, in only a moment it started to quickly rock back and forth and she couldn't help but feel like a tossed salad as she bounced around inside of it. She tried hard to stay in place, but every now and then couldn't help but dump against Mavid's side. "What the hell is going on?!" she demanded after a couple minutes of this.

She couldn't see him, but Mavid's voice answered back at her in the darkness. "It's tunneling through the ground, we're probably moving along about four feet below the surface right now."

She was underground?! "This normally happens?"

"It's more cramped when its Jareth and I. Be thank -you just hit me in the ribs!" he snapped.

She tried to back off a little further, but it was no use as she was tossed back and forth continuously. "Sorry, I cant exactly help it," she hissed back.

"Are you even trying?" he grumbled.

She ignored him but fantasized about pretending to get thrown just for the excuse to punch him in the neck. The skirts of her dress were making it particularly hard for her to stay put. Just when she was about to give up they stopped rocking entirely and all was still for about four seconds before the beetle opened up and a barrage of noise suddenly filled her ears. She turned over and sat up from the odd carrier to look around, her eyes nearly bugging out of her skull at what she saw. They were still underground, in what seemed to be a giant cavern of some sort. It was lit up well enough with hundreds of candles and floating lights that flew randomly around and filled with all sorts of creatures, most of which looked shady and grubby. They all were moving around and between little stands and make-shift shops, yelling and bartering and buying and other sellers who didn't have stands were moving through the crowd to sell their few products.

It wasn't all this that brought shocked tears to her eyes though. Sarah placed her hand over her mouth to cover up her gasp as she took in the stands that were all completely full of odds and ends from the Aboveground!

She felt Mavid place a cloak over her shoulders from next to her and she didn't stop him when he flipped the hood over her head. "This is the black magic market," he whispered to her. "Jareth told me to help you find some things you want here."

She wiped her tears off before she turned to Mavid. It took her a moment to find her voice. "Why isn't Jareth here too?"

He narrowed his eyes a little at that. "Look around, does this look like a safe place for royalty to be with all these lowlifes? For that matter how many females do you see here?"

Sarah took another look and saw what he meant. Everyone looked ready to pull a knife on each other. There were a couple females… or what looked like such anyway, but they mostly looked just as rough as everyone else. The few in the area that didn't look dangerous were keeping close to someone who did. She could guess how dangerous she would look to those here; meaning that she too would have to stay close to Mavid for her own safety. She was okay with that this time; as her eyes roamed over the stands and she saw everything from Campbell's soup cans to ironing boards she only wanted to get closer.

Her heart was fluttering for the chance to get at the very familiar objects but Mavid was trying to get her attention. She finally turned to look at him.

"Before we get out of this thing there are some rules we have to go over," he informed her, his face dead serious. "The first one being that no one can know who we are. You don't say my name and I wont say yours. Make sure you don't talk to anyone but me either. If anyone speaks to you let me handle it. You need to walk behind me not in front and you are to keep one hand on the small of my back at all times so I know I didn't lose you. If you want to buy something or look at something let me know, but I will tell you right now that you are not allowed to buy anything potentially dangerous, overly large, or alive."

He went on with more rules, but Sarah hardly paid attention since it was mostly stuff about keeping a low profile and she got the importance of that already. By the time Mavid was done with his safety lecture she was practically aching to get out and look around. She could hardly believe that this was here in the Underground, or that Jareth had put this together for her. She couldn't help but actually feel touched by it. He had actually listened to her.

Mavid helped her down from the carriage and then readjusted the hooded cloak he had slipped on her to wrap it around her a little more. As her eyes darted all over the shops and all too familiar merchandise he turned his back on her and placed her hands on both sides of his waist before setting off into the crowd.

Sarah tried to comply with what he had told her about not touching or looking at anyone, but the crowd was dense enough that it made it impossible to follow those directions perfectly. She saw a stand that particularly interested her because it seemed to have less trash and more shoes from the aboveground on it and pulled at Mavid to stop him. She managed to and he took her cue to guide her through to the stand, but they were cutting through traffic more than moving with it now and Sarah gasped when something that looked like a bear and a man combined stopped short to avoid crashing into her and growled down at her, showing teeth that surely could have snapped her in half and the look on his face made her believe that he wanted to do just that.

She tightened her grip on Mavid's shoulders and he moved her away successfully, the man bear moving on with the foot traffic. They made it to the stand she had wanted and she let out a little sigh of relief, glad to at least momentarily be away from that more than shady crowd. The stand was covered in more odds and ends from the aboveground, like someone had just grabbed everything they could see and brought it here to sell. They were all that way from what she could see, and as she looked at the shoes that had interested her she saw that almost none of them had a mate, they were all well used, and some of them were socks that someone had strung cord through to look like laces. The owner of the stand was short and green and turtle-like and there was water sitting in the concave top of his head like a bowl. He was currently trying to pass one of the socks off to a confused looking orc. "Tasty delicious! You no find better shoe anywhere. All gourmet here!"

"That's not a shoe, it's a sock." Sarah pointed out without thinking.

The seller gave her the most menacing look and the orc gazed a little closer at the sock presented to him. After a moment anger spread over his confused face and he growled at the owner of the stand, who backed off from him. "My mistake boss, we make it square, you take free shoe for snack later yes?"

The orc growled again and demanded two, and Sarah found Mavid pushing her quickly away from the stand while the little owner was busy. "Move move move," he insisted, pushing her back out into the traffic.

"What the hell is wrong with you that you cant follow the most basic of directions?" he snapped at her, clearly outraged. "I told you not to speak to anyone."

He had, but she didn't see what she had done so wrong in that case. "But he was trying to trick that orc. I'd rather he be mad he didn't make the sale than the orc be mad because he was tricked."

"That just shows how little you know," Mavid snapped at her. "I'd take on that orc any day before I take on a kappa. Those little bastards tear your liver out through your anus! These situations are why it's best to keep your fool mouth shut."

Even if he was right he didn't need to talk to her like that. She didn't appreciate it and was willing to bet that if Jareth were there Mavid would change his tone quick enough. Maybe she would tell Jareth about it later, but she wasn't sure.

She decided to change the subject. "How do all these things get down here? Does someone go up and get them?"

"I don't know," Mavid huffed at her. "Stop making a nuisance of yourself and finish your shopping so we can head back. The longer we're out here the more likely you are to get us both in trouble."

He was being very grouchy today for some reason, more so than he had reason to be anyway. Sarah was willing to bet that even if he didn't know how the aboveground brick-a-brack managed to continuously flow down here that he at least had ideas of who was bringing it in and how. He obviously wasn't going to share them with her though.

Sarah didn't manage to find what all she might have been hoping for as she went over various shops, but she did manage to pick up some things, such as a half empty bottle of dark purple finger nail polish and a picture book of animals around the Aboveground world written in English. Sarah couldn't wait to show that to Toby. He would be able to see the animals from the Aboveground that she had told him about. Maybe Mavias would enjoy it too. There had been a few more things she had seen that she had wanted, but they had fallen under Mavid's unpermitted rules of being too big or dangerous or alive (in the case of a little cockatoo bird that one of the shops was selling. She had seen a folding pocketknife that she had admired too, but once she had opened the blade and Mavid realized what it was he had knocked it from her hand back onto the table. The other thing she saw she had no idea how anyone had gotten it down here, but there was an old motorcycle at one of the shops. It likely didn't work anyway already, but Mavid had been quick to point out that she would have no use for it since she hardly ever was allowed outside the castle anyway. Mavid had worked out the pricing on her bought items and soon they would head back, but at the moment they were at the last shop of the day.

Sarah had just moved over a cracked vase when the crowd suddenly surged past the stand over to the far corner of the cavern, everyone shouting excitedly over there as some blue scaly creature went up on some raised stage and held up a live chicken by it's legs dramatically. The bird flapped its wings like mad and white feathers flew everywhere. Creatures in the crowd started to shout things Sarah didn't understand. "What are they doing?" she asked Mavid.

"Auctioning off the bird. Chickens are extremely prized down here. To have some is a sign of wealth just because of how expensive and valuable they are. Their eggs and meat are delicious and their feathers and bones used in medicines."

"But I've seen at least two of them running around the castle from time to time." Sarah said, wondering why Jareth would have them roaming freely for the goblins to pick on if they were worth so much.

"Goblins as a whole have no interest in chickens beyond the occasional urge to startle them. I don't know why exactly, but I suspect its because they resemble some of the older basilisk species that died out long ago. It used to be that a basilisk was a cross between a rooster and a snake. Now they are just snakes and worshiped by the naga race."

"If they're so valuable why doesn't Jareth breed the ones he has?"

"Because no one can. Not one egg has ever been successfully fertilized in the underground. that's part of why a chicken is valuable."

Weird. Sarah turned her attention away from the crowd and back to the table. Something actually caught her interest and she looked over at a dark green pencil case. She picked it up and opened it, hoping for good things and she wasn't disappointed. It might have been lifted off a student or something, for it was filled with pens, pencils, erasers, and a couple permanent markers. She wanted the pencils and erasers for drawing in her ample free time, and she wondered if maybe she should give the pens and markers to Jareth and Mavid for all the paperwork they were always doing. Surely they would find it easier than ink and quills.

"What are those?" Mavid asked, his tone suspicious since for all he knew she was holding a bag of TNT.

"You write things down with them, like a quill," she explained, taking the sharpie and uncapping it. She was pleased to see it working fine when she made a small line on the palm of her hand to show him. "I want this bag," she informed him quietly, slipping the stuff back in and zipping it shut.

Mavid nodded his head and called over the shop keeper. As he started to haggle Sarah looked down at the piece of black cloth the bag had been resting on and played with it idly. Her heart freezing for a moment when she found a part sewn into an unmistakable leg opening. With her heart suddenly hammering in hope she pulled the soft and stretchy fabric from the pile it was in and had to hold in her sqwee when she saw she had been right in thinking that they were women's yoga pants! She had to have them and she didn't care what size they were. She missed the comfiness of Aboveground clothes and she was aching for something to wear that wasn't a skirt. "And these!" she cut in, saying it a little louder than she meant to and earning her two dirty looks from Mavid and the shop keep. She ignored them though, handing him her find and when he finally started to include the pants in with the price she had to turn her head all the way down to the ground to hide her grin.

Mavid purchased the items for most of what was left of the jewels Jareth had given her and he stuffed those into the same burlap carrier bag with the rest of her stuff and tied it closed tight with twine so no one would easily be able to steal from it. "We're going back now." he informed her.

She was still beyond pleased with her finds and nodded her head happily. She couldn't wait to try on her new pants.

He turned and she hurried after him, her hands on his waist like he had told her to do when they first arrived. The crowd wasn't as dense thanks to the chicken auction, but there were still plenty of people and things for them to navigate their way through. It was out of nowhere when a thin and grey little imp leaped out at Mavid and intentionally swiped at his face, narrowly missing clawing his eyes out before Mavid reached out and knocked him down to the ground lighting quick! Sarah gasped and backed off a step as the imp sprang up and hissed at him, his bat like wings up and shaking in time to his hiss behind him in a scare tactic and although it scared Sarah plenty Mavid was unfazed and when the imp attacked him again he managed to get a hold of the creature's throat. Sarah was yanked from the small crowd that had started to look on at this spectacle by her wrist and she was taken so much by surprise by it that she didn't get her footing in time to stop whoever had managed to pull her away from Mavid till they were behind one of the little stands. Sarah dug her heels into the ground and was about to lash out at whoever had grabbed her, but was stopped by the familiar sight of thick dark hair and red lips grinning at her.

Sarah's jaw actually dropped at she stared back at a highly amused looking Lilith. She hadn't heard anything from the female since Jareth warned her about the succubus's nature and had her write a rejection to her. "Fancy running into you here of all places." Lilith beamed, as though they were old friends. "I knew when I saw Mavid that you had to be you."

Sarah looked over her shoulder, wondering if Mavid had shaken the imp yet and wishing that he was here now.

Lilith stepped uncomfortably close to her and turned so that Sarah was between her and the shop. "Oh don't worry about him, my little minion is just playing with him. I thought it would give us a chance to…" she leaned in even closer and if Sarah hadn't pulled her neck back their lips might have touched, "Talk," Lilith whispered the last word.

She chuckled softly at Sarah's obvious discomfort and it sounded like music to the ears as she pushed back some of her thick hair that Sarah remembered her confessing to just being an allusion. It was a good illusion though and looked so touchable. Sarah inwardly glared at herself in confusion when she found herself fighting the impulse to run her hand through it.

"I got your letter," Lilith informed her, "It broke my heart," she pouted, jutting her lip out before chuckling again. "I'm guessing that Jareth made you write it… and I assume he may have said some very naughty things about me." The perfect smile was in place, making her look stunning, but Sarah could still catch the underlying tone that sent warning shivers down her back.

"I'm sorry, Lilith, but I don't want to talk about this now. Please let me get back to Mavid." She had to get away, she knew that much.

She jumped when Lilith let out a bark of laughter before letting out a sigh that ghosted over Sarah's face and neck, sending the most startling pang of pleasure through her loins and Sarah inched back against the shop a little more. "Oh sweet Sarah, didn't I tell you to call me Lilly?" she reminded her, running her hand down the side of Sarah's neck and Sarah found herself afraid when her body ached from the touch again and she caught herself wanting Lilith to come closer to her.

She didn't though, not really. Lilith was beautiful looking thanks to the effect she had on humans to naturally look like their ideal, but Sarah had no sexual interests of her own in females. Much less so in one that she had been warned feeds off forced sex with those that don't want it. Her body did seem to want it though, the way it was responding outside of her control. It wasn't her. "What are you doing?!" Sarah accused Lilith, sure that she was pulling some sort of hoodoo on her to make her feel this way.

"Relax Sarah, they're just endorphins, ones I can control and concentrate through proximity and touch," Lilith smiled, running her hand down Sarah's stomach through her dress and Sarah blushed furiously when she just about bent over from the surge of intense pleasure she felt between her legs from just that one diluted touch. She knew it was some sort of magic of Lilith's and that was cheating.

"Don't!" Sarah hissed at her while fighting the urge to make her do it again.

"I don't tend to get turned down often Sarah, but if you were going to do so you really should have at least done it to my face." the female purred. Sarah felt her eyes roll back in her head for a moment at the touch of Lilith's hands on her face, forcing her to look right into her eyes that had once been blue and now flashed a fire-red for but a moment and sent a chill of fear down Sarah's back. "Now you can. Just tell me no and I will stop and walk away," Lilith smirked, but before Sarah could say a thing she pressed Sarah's body between herself and the shop and pressed her lips against hers.

Sarah felt outrage and unbridled lust coursing through her body at the same time and at the same time that her hands tried to push Lilith's shoulders away her lower body grinded against her outside of Sarah's control and she opened her lips to allow Lilith in, a small orgasm ripping though her body when Lilith's tongue stroked inside her mouth and Sarah felt Lilith's nails sink into her own shoulders to hold her in place as she made a small growl of a noise into Sarah's mouth and sucked in. Sarah felt her legs grow weak, but not from passion. Rather it was like they had just lost their strength when Lilith had sucked in. Lilith helped to slowly lower her, but Sarah knew that she couldn't let the she demon do so. She would be utterly defenseless if Lilith got her on the ground.

"That was a tasty little orgasm you just had for me," Lilith grinned when she broke the kiss for a moment, "I cant wait to take more of them from you. They give me so much more strength when I take them from someone who doesn't want to give them."

Sarah pushed against her as best she could but when Lilith sealed her lips over hers again she fell to the ground, her legs feeling useless. Lilith's hands burned over Sarah's shoulders and down to her covered breasts, resting over them like she could tell through the corsets that Sarah's buds were fully erect and straining themselves to be touched under the influence of Lilith's terrifying powers. "I imagine it could only take a couple more of them to leave you utterly drained of your strength. The last person I fed from almost slipped into a coma," she giggled, sending another chill of fear through Sarah as she ran her tongue over Sarah's collar bone, just dipping below the fabric of her dress.

 _Jareth help me!_

Sarah gasped when a large boot suddenly slammed into the side of Lilith's head above her and the female went rolling off of her, screaming and hissing. Clarity suddenly flooded Sarah's mind and body again now that Lilith was no longer touching her and she scrambled to her feet as best she could behind Mavid, who had planted himself firmly between the two women.

Lilith recovered, although it looked like her perfect face had been just about smashed in from the force of the kick. "How dare you!" she screeched at Mavid, the sound of her voice like nails on a chalkboard.

"I have a sworn duty to protect my mistress," Mavid snapped back at her. "You were clearly instructed by both her and Jareth to cease contact. You could be taken before the counsel for this."

Lilith actually laughed at that, her skin splitting where Mavid had made contact and Sarah covered her mouth as blood trickled down over the female's chin. "She could have told me to stop what I was doing. She never did, even after I invited her to do so. She would have died with a grin on her face!"

Sarah felt tears of fear and embarrassment slip down from her eyes, jumping slightly when Mavid placed his arm over her shoulders. "If you or one of your minions comes at us again I will kill you where you stand," he warned her coldly. "I know Jareth will want to deal with you himself later."

She laughed even harder at that. "If Jareth thinks he has the power than I'll throw open my doors and my legs to him to accept either his member or his sword, but until then I will live without fear and you will forgive me for doing so."

"We shall see how long you can live with out fear." Mavid hissed back, leading Sarah quickly back out from the shop. "Hold this for me, just in case," he ordered her, handing her the sack he had been carrying.

There was a couple scratches on his forehead down to his eyebrow and there was some bruising around his neck like he had been choked at some point. Sarah hugged the bag tightly to her, her body still feeling aroused from the after effects of Lilith's magic. "Are you alright?" she asked him, finding herself actually worried about his injuries.

"I'm fine," he assured her. "Jareth is going to be furious though… not at us mind you."

"What will he do?" Sarah asked, thankful when they finally reached their metal beetle.

"That's going to be the tricky part… the counsel partakes of the Black Magic Market such as everyone else, but they are all on record as being against it. Royals go there often enough, but they mustn't get caught there for a number of legal and social reasons. Lilith isn't a royal, and she flaunts that she can slip into the Aboveground constantly through people's dreams. She could escape a scandal like this one relatively easy."

Sarah wasn't sure she fully understood all of what Mavid was explaining, but he didn't say more and she was anxious to get back home. She was dying to get a hold of Jareth and relieve the pressure left in her loins. She still couldn't think all that clearly from how her body was feeling. She would have pulled up her skirts and taken care of herself right then and there if Mavid wasn't in the beetle with her, and this time the rocking did nothing to help her as images of Jareth causing her body to rock this way from his own body's movements plagued her.

"We'll be back soon," Mavid informed her softly, almost as if he knew how she was feeling, which only brought a blush to her cheeks.

"Mavid… thank you," she whispered, needing to tell him despite any hard feelings that might have been between them. "Thank you for protecting me, and saving me. And for the times you've helped me even though you hate me."

Mavid was dead silent and dead still beside her in the beetle for the rest of the trip, and she was fine with that since she hadn't been looking for a response, but merely felt she had owed him the thanks at least.

X

Sarah lay in a panting and sweaty mess beneath him on the floor of the hallway, her long layers of skirts up around her hips and her hair strewn about on the stones as she panted hard.

She had come back to him in a state that Jareth had never seen her in before; wonton with need for his body and classless in her blatant strokes over his clothed hips and sex as Mavid informed him of the trouble they had run into that had caused this in Sarah, causing his blood to boil and his vision to go red. He felt at that moment that he could have severed Lilith's head from her shoulders with his own sword. _That bloody she-devil_!

That urge had had to wait, however, because as angry as he was they needed to get the children back to their nursery and Sarah needed attending to before she became uncontrollable. They had just barely gotten the children in bed when Sarah had dragged him by the lapels of his jacket out of the room and into the hall, her mouth insistent on his as her small hands tore at his clothes with strength he didn't know she even possessed. Her frenzy got the better of her common sense and the moment they were in the hall she had managed to pull Jareth out of his jacket and onto the stone floor despite his insistence that they at least make it the last few feet into his room. There had been no reasoning with her at that point, however, and she had freed his member, cupping him in her hand as she started to pull up the skirts of her dress and beg him for it. Jareth had only just managed to kick the nursery door shut in Mavid's face before she had started pumping him, coaxing him to stiffen and enter her.

The sex had been thrilling and slightly shocking, finding that Sarah had started her period and that she was not only giving her permission to him regardless, but that she was verbally begging him to touch her, obviously having been susceptive to Lilith's renown control over some of the lesser species dopamine and serotonin levels. Right now Sarah's were on overload and the adrenaline that subsequently flowed through her meant that there was little that would persuade her to change her mind till she got her release.

"God, Jareth now! Please take me now, I want to feel you in me. Please Jareth," she cooed softly to him over and over again and placed kisses against his neck and chest as he positioned himself before her, pushing the situation from his mind so that he could help her through this. The initial entry left them both gasping, Sarah for the initial relief and him because between her sabotaged hormones and monthly time she was absolutely on fire, feeling hotter and tighter around his cock than he could ever remember. A brutal and feral noise escaped from deep in his throat just before he bent over her and started to pound into her just to the point of where he feared he would hurt her. She begged him for more the entire time.

X

 _This isn't my personal favorite chapter_


	38. Chapter 38

"There has to be something else we can get her with!" Jareth hissed, glaring down at the broken shards on the floor of his throne room where he had slammed down one of his crystals.

The goblins around him cackled at his distress and he kicked one particularly hard in the stomach, which only caused the others to laugh harder as it went flying into the wall. As it got up and shook itself off Jareth rounded about on Mavid, who actually stepped back from Jareth a couple inches.

He had just gotten done talking with Lilith of all creatures through his crystals and after he had furiously chewed her up one side and down the other she had had the nerve to feign boredom and made a show of yawning at him.

As his vision grew red she had responded to him that she had indeed fed off Sarah, and if she had to admit that to a counsel she would… but she would also admit that it was in the middle of the Black Magic Market where she and Mavid were purchasing contraband. Lilith had then laughed and told him that he was fortunate that she was willing to let this rest with them both just forgetting it happened at all, rather than demanding he allow her to have Sarah again in exchange for continued silence! She had, however, told him that she expected some sort of compensation for the damage Mavid had done to her face. Jareth had used some more colorful language at that point that had nothing to do with the pristine one.

In light of her obvious distress, last night Jareth had insisted that Sarah share his bed, and that she see to Mavias's night care to keep her mind off of what had happened with Lilith. Both had helped out with her own mind's ungraciousness in throwing nightmares at her and she didn't argue with him about it. He was still upset by what had happened with Lilith too. Upset was the wrong word actually…. He was _pissed._

Mavid had been doing his duty in protecting his queen and so he obviously owed her nothing for that, pointing out the injuries Mavid had sustained from her imp for good measure. She had turned sour then, informing Jareth that her own imp would never fly again from the injuries Mavid had given him. The whole argument had turned into a match of who-lost-more-in-this-scenario for the sake of final compensation. Jareth still claimed that what she had done to Sarah won out above all.

"She was given the chance to say no, darling. I told her to do so. Teach the girl some self restraint if she doesn't have any. I am not at fault," Lilith snorted flippantly. "That wont make any difference for what happened yesterday, however. She allowed me to feed and I did. There really isn't anything else to discuss there."

"The counsel would see differently," Jareth hissed at her, "You placed her under your magic-"

"The Counsel," Lilith interrupted, dragging out the word, "Would also look down on your most trusted-s being in the black magic market at all and would ipso facto look down on you."

"Ipso facto?" Jareth mumbled, confused by the unfamiliar term.

"It's an Aboveground term that I'm sure your darling wife can explain to you. I'll ask her to do so myself if you want," Lilith laughed seductively.

That had been about the time he had hurled the crystal he held into the floor.

He wanted some revenge for the advantages she had taken over Sarah, not an impasse where both parties just let it drop.

Mavid simply let out a sigh, offering up no suggestions and no help as Jareth let out another growl of frustration. "You were supposed to be watching her!" he accused his attendant.

Mavid's eyes narrowed. "I was the one who stopped Lilith. And you know how Sarah is, she cant go anywhere without something happening to her."

"If you had been doing your job Lilith wouldn't have gotten near her to begin with!" Jareth hissed out hatefully. He actually contemplated if he should whip Mavid for his failure, but on some level he knew that Mavid always did everything in his power to see to his duties. Sarah's account of the previous night had backed Mavid up on that. He was just angry and, as unfair as he knew it to be, Mavid was closest to him.

Mavid knew this too from a lifetime of being around Jareth, dropping his head even though his subservience didn't meet his eyes. "I apologize," he said stiffly.

The goblins all hooted and hollered and jeered at Mavid. As slow as the things were they did understand when someone was kowtowing and took much ill pleasure in the sight.

"Quiet!" Jareth cut them off immediately. The throne room went silent.

"Do you think she'll try to get near Sarah again?" Jareth asked Mavid, since he himself was unsure. Lilith was hard to predict.

Mavid shrugged. "I wouldn't leave them alone in a bedroom, but I don't think Lilith will storm the castle just to finish what she started. She never sought the girl out till she was placed right in front of her. If I had to guess I would say she was doing it more out of sport than necessity."

"And you already saw to it that those imps of hers will not enter the labyrinth?"

"Yes Jareth, after one came here to deliver that letter to Sarah I did as you instructed me then. These grounds are secure from them."

Jareth nodded his head, accepting Mavid's answer, but he still continued to brood as he sat back down in his throne and swung a leg up to hang off the arm. He was still frustrated that his 'meeting' with Lilith had resulted in a stalemate. This wasn't a matter he could take before the counsel either. Any further offense he committed towards her she could then take against him to the counsel if he wasn't careful and clever about it. He let out a frustrated huff, wishing that he could hold little Jareth and Mavias to help calm himself down. But in the throne room he was surrounded by goblins, which Mavias was still too young to be around. And besides, they were both currently in the library with the females and Dr. John Dee; whom had come to the labyrinth earlier after breakfast to visit with Sarah. He wondered how that was going.

"If you are sated for the moment…"

"You may go Mavid," Jareth nodded, pulling his riding crop from his boot shaft to toy with. The male didn't go so far as to bow, but simply nodded his head before exiting the room to see to his own chores. Jareth wished he could go back to his study, but knew that keeping a level of control over the goblins meant putting in some face time with them ever now and again. He slapped one with the crop that walked to close to him, the thing giggling like an idiot before jumping back. "Which one of you usually shines my boots?" he snapped at them, causing one of the smaller ones to come running forward with a rag clenched in his hands as he dropped to the ground and started to wipe at the boot Jareth still had planted on the ground.

In moments the goblins in the throne room were laughing and hollering at each other again, climbing all over the floor and walls around him. They threw things and hit each other, careful only to not hit their king.

With 'order' restored Jareth summoned up a crystal and let it roll over first one arm than the other before flipping it over in his hand, gazing into it as he focused on the library.

X

It had been growing colder and colder over the last few months, but today there seemed to be a bit of a snap in the weather and the castle wasn't drafty, but rather comfortable in comparison. The fireplaces that had been devouring wood day in and day out were actually off today. Their warmth was lingering in the rooms and halls of the castle well enough without the cold constantly battling its way in. Sarah wondered out loud if maybe it was a sign of things to come. She remembered the way the labyrinth had been fair to warm when she ran it the first time and hoped for that again. She tended to hate the cold.

"It's nearly impossible to predict such things as the weather all the way out here, so close to the mountains," Dr. Dee answered her, "Especially since the Underground as a whole has no set seasons as far as I have been able to tell."

"They don't even have time down here," Sarah sighed, remembering what Jareth had told her.

"Poppycock!" Dee dismissed her, "So what if they don't have set years or months or calendars? They still have day and night, and a sun and a few moons. And although I haven't quite put together what a day here can equal to a day Aboveground exactly, I do know that down here a Darkness occurs every 365 days. I started counting long ago. If we were in the Aboveground I would say about ten years ago I started counting."

Sarah couldn't help but smile, even though she sometimes had trouble keeping up with everything Dr. Dee was talking about. He was amazingly smart and entertaining. Jareth had been right about him having opinions, but it was in a good way. He had something smart to say about every subject it seemed. All she had to do was mention the weather and he took off like a shot. They had been talking about whatever came to their minds all afternoon.

After meeting him this morning Jareth had been the one to suggest she show him the library, and although she had no way to read most of the foreign writings housed in there, Dee had had a wonderful time looking through things for a while. Toby had had a wonderful time just running around exploring, but at the moment he was curled up on one of the less dusty benches napping away the afternoon as Clora and Ishapelle talked to each other in hushed tones of court gossip next to him. Sarah had never said anything to them about her breakdown, figuring that there were more than enough people who knew about it already. Ishapelle had asked her since then how she was feeling, however. Jareth may have mentioned that she had missed dinner with them because she wasn't feeling well, but it was also possible that he had said nothing and Ishapelle was asking because of the smaller breakdown she had actually witnessed Sarah have at the Devine Castle.

They had grown bored of Sarah's and Dee's conversations long ago. Torik hadn't though, and although he said little, he sat on the floor next to Sarah's feet -insisting that he was comfortable that way- and listened to them.

Mavias was close to falling asleep, at the moment being cradled in Sarah's lap.

"You mentioned something about a darkness marking every 365 days here," Sarah reminded him, "What is that?"

"It's not a fun thing," Torik muttered, a shadow passing over his face at some unpleasant memory. "Every thing goes dark and weird things happen."

Sarah drew her brows in confusion as to what that meant, but before she could ask Dee turned to Torik.

"I suppose you don't know the myths behind the Day of Darkness," Dee said, smoothing out the long fabrics of his dark grey robe and pulling down on his very long beard absently. "Its believed by a few cultures in the Underground that the Darkness is caused by Death trying to walk amongst the living again, his cloak trailing behind him and blocking all light. There is no sun to be seen on that day and it turns darker than night could ever be. The brightest candle could only barely be seen on the Day of Darkness. Everyone must stay inside on that day for Death is lonely and will force anyone he encounters on his travel through this world to walk with him. The next day death will leave, and take with him any souls he's collected to keep him company till the next year."

Sarah felt a chill got through her spine at Dee's creepy story. "It gets dark for a whole day?"

"Darker than night, like not being able to see the hand in front of your face," Torik piped in. "It's the creepiest thing you've ever gone through. At Ish's fathers manor when it would happen everyone, even the servants, would gather together in the cellar and wait it out for twenty four hours. The whole time its hard to get much light to do anything no matter how many candles you have and you can sometimes hear these extremely creepy noises outside the walls and windows but you cant see anything. Its horrible."

Sarah felt another chill shoot through her spine, actually frightened by what Torik was telling her. She thought maybe he was teasing her or exaggerating in order to spook her, but Dee was merely nodding his head in agreement. He shook his head as if to clear a memory from it before planting a smile firmly on his face. "No more talk about that tonight, it will be quite a while before another one comes around. Lets turn back to better subjects."

Sarah shook off another chill as Dee turned to her.

"So tell me something else about the thrilling advances of the Aboveground," Dee coaxed excitedly, still partially reeling from her earlier explanation of phones to him.

Sarah chuckled and tried to think of something else to tell him that wouldn't take all day to explain. "There have been great advances in modern medicine," she told him proudly. "There are no more world-spread plagues to really speak of. We can do surgery on the heart or brain with out killing someone or making them feel a lot of pain. And in fact some people are having surgery to make themselves look different. And leprosy is curable!"

His jaw dropped at that, having been through the black plague. "Unheard of! Why if you had lived in my time Aboveground and spoken of such things you would have been declared mad! So then colds and fevers are no longer even issues?"

Sarah had to laugh then. "Actually despite all our advances we haven't found any cure for the common cold! They can stop your heart for five minutes without killing you but the cold remains elusive to them I guess."

"My my, it seems that I left the Aboveground to seek out a fairy world, and now if I went back I would be doing the same. Mind you I have no mind to ever go back. I find that my preferences lay heavily on the Underground. Its so clean and pure here…" he glanced around at the dusty library. "Well this castle is a lesser example, but even the labyrinth holds its purities."

"I believe I remember someone saying that you were the only human to ever find their own way into the Underground?" Sarah prodded, finding herself greatly curious about that. "How did you ever manage that?"

"Through intense meditation, dumb luck, and an object called a shew stone combined with a waxen seal of god. I was able to glimpse this world only once or twice in all my meditations, but it was enough that I was convinced it existed and I was meant to find it. I honestly suspected that it was the lost eden… or possibly hell. But I was finally able to find my way here with my mind in the astral plane, and outside of my control my body somehow managed to join me and I was ripped from my world into this one… an extremely painful process I assure you. It is what being born must feel like."

Sarah's jaw was slack with awe. She hardly knew what to say to that.

"There's probably no way to get back to the Aboveground that way then huh?" Torik spoke up, his eyes wide as well at Dee's story.

"Not one I would choose no," Dee confirmed. "The only way most creatures can ever pass between worlds is to be invited, or summoned if you will. Often they must be summoned by name by someone who has a certain amount of belief in magic."

"That's what I heard," Torik muttered, resting his head against his propped up knee.

Sarah couldn't help but think back to when she had unwittingly summoned up the goblins and Jareth to take Toby from her… it seemed so long ago. She had the childish belief in magic then, obviously it had been enough when combined with the right words to make the summoning work. She looked over to Toby, curled up on his stomach with his head turned away from the back of the couch so she could see his little mouth open. His brows were actually drawn as though he were frowning and she could see the resemblance to his father coming out in his facial structure now. Jareth had been right that his baby fat was melting off. It looked as though he was on his way to being gangly and lanky.

Sarah looked down at Mavias again and compared the way they looked, as she often found herself doing. Mavias had managed to fall asleep and his face was one of peaceful rest, his little chest rising and falling with his steady breathing. He was naturally very pale, and it contrasted sharply to the black hairs sprinkling across his head that were all wavy in texture.

"He's a beautiful babe," Dee complimented, bringing Sarah back into the moment. "It's been a long time since I've seen one so young. I'm sure you both have noticed how the fae safeguard children. Its good to see a babe so young again."

She had introduced the children already, when they had been awake. "They're both beautiful to me of course, but I'm hoping that Toby keeps the curls in his hair through adulthood. I think they will make him quite handsome," Sarah smirked. "What do you think about the pristine language? And the fact that we're not allowed to speak it?" she still felt a might bit bitter about that.

Dee scoffed at that. "That its just one of the many perks that the fae allow themselves and no one else," he huffed, apparently even more bitter about it than Sarah. "I have spoken with several fae on the subject of making a language forbidden being foolish, your husband included, and they all dismiss me on this. It is very silly, but they are non-budging on this one. Do you know that they will not even write anything in the pristine language? Its only ever spoken and no one is to ever record it. So that it dies off with the race or something. A bunch of rubbish!"

Sarah couldn't help but smile. There was indeed something about Dee that she liked very much and she was happy that Jareth had set this up for her. She sincerely hoped that it was far from her last visit with him. When he had arrived this morning she had almost wished that Jareth would send him away, still feeling down about the turn of events in the black magic market all through breakfast. Now she was thankful she hadn't.

At breakfast neither Jareth nor Mavid ate much at all, and although Sarah was still upset that it had happened, she also felt… safe. She was more than pretty sure that Lilith couldn't just come waltzing into the castle or even into the Labyrinth and if she did both Jareth and Mavid were here. Sarah was never one to play the damsel in distress, but there was a great comfort in knowing that there were others who had her back if things went down and she couldn't handle it. She had seen for herself that they would both act on her behalf without hesitation.

She had no doubt in her mind that Jareth was too busy thinking of ways to go after Lilith for what she had tried to pull to be bothered with his food. She just hoped it wouldn't put him in any danger to mess with her. Lilith wasn't royal or rich from what Sarah knew, but she did seem very powerful. She had imps under her command and from what Torik had mentioned about travel between the worlds being difficult or even impossible for most Underground beings Lilith would have to be powerful to go back and forth like she claimed to do.

Last night had been… something else. She hadn't been able to help herself when she had taken Jareth in the hall… and then on the floor of their room… and again on the bed. She hadn't heard him complain once though, although he had held her down and set a much slower pace for their last go. She had been fine afterwards and Jareth had been good enough to lay in bed and just hold her and pet her for a while afterward. It had been nice despite the humiliation that had caused her to need such a release.

"Did I ever tell you about my years spent under Queen Mary?" Dee said, interrupting her thoughts. "Elizabeth was dear to me and I was happy to serve and tutor her… but what a guttersnipe her mother was!"

Sarah leaned back in her chair and cuddled Mavias closer to her as Dee started prattling on and on about the court life, comparing and contrasting it to the way things were run in the courts of the Fae, and from there comparing the fae courts to the one the trolls held, which was much more barbaric and the outcomes were determined from cutting a fairy in two and seeing if it died with its wings pointed up or down. The discussion fascinated Sarah and Torik both for a very long while before the door to the sitting room opened up and Jareth and Mavid entered, both looking tired and bored as all conversation in the room paused.

"You all are late for supper," Jareth informed everyone dryly, his tone suggesting that he hardly cared about the tardiness. "Dr. Dee I would be honored to offer you a place at the table before you depart."

Sarah turned back to Dee, unable to keep the hope that he would say yes from her face. She liked talking with him, between his opinionated manner and white beard he reminded her of her grandfather Williams. Back when she was little he had always been telling her stories about the 'olden days' and although Dee's olden days in the Aboveground were much more 'olden' it was still great to talk about the Aboveground with others who actually knew first hand what she was talking about.

Dee saw her anxiousness and chuckled softly. "The honor would be mine to accept."

X

"-He was trying to communicate with angels using some sort of crystal back in his time Aboveground. He told me he even saw someone peering back at him once. Do you think maybe he actually managed to use a crystal for viewing others far away? Can you do that with your crystals? Is that how you always knew where I was in the Labyrinth or was it more of a psychic connection to your kingdom kind of thing? Do you believe there are such things as angels? Everything else I was ever told never existed is down here. I think it would actually be cool if Angels were too. Actually… maybe I wouldn't want that. Better not to meet an angel than to meet one and be disappointed I suppose."

"Sarah- please, allow me the time to at least wash my hair," Jareth sighed, already very tired and ready for sleep. His mood was still on the south side from his conference with Lilith and although he was pleased that she was so happy from her visit with John Dee she had not stopped telling him all about it since the old man had left for his home. After supper neither Toby nor Mavias had been easy to put back to sleep since they had both slipped in such long naps during the day while Sarah had been distracted. While Jareth had been trying to sooth them both Sarah had been telling him about Dee's opinions of how the Pixie society distinctly compared to that of the ancient Chinese of her old world.

Even now during their nightly bath, a time he very much relied on to relax and unwind from his day, she continued to go on and on with it.

"Go ahead, I wont stop you," she shrugged, oblivious to his poor mood. There was a moments pause from her as he started to rinse out his hair, but before the water could even pour off his hair she had started up again. "Oh, I forgot to tell you about the funny thing Dee said about Queen Mary! He said-"

"Who?"

"She was queen of England a long time ago. He said-"

"Sarah enough!" Jareth snapped at her then, more than annoyed at that point. "I don't know who that queen is and I don't care. I asked _my_ queen to let this conversation rest so that I may relax before it is time for sleep. I expect her to listen." He didn't worry himself with her response, which was to stare at him in hurt shock, as he rinsed the last of the soap from his hair and leaned back against the side of the tub. The hot water surrounded him up to his neck and he let out his first comforted sigh of the night. It was short lived, however, when he cracked his eyes open to see Sarah still staring at him like he had just canceled all her meals for tomorrow or something.

Jareth let out another sigh and sat back up. "Sarah I am happy that you enjoyed your time with Dee, but I am tired and my day has been less than pleasant. I am not asking you to never talk to me about him again, but simply no more tonight." The fact that he had to explain himself was just another little trial to add onto the night. She shouldn't need explanations every time he told her to do something. As far as he was concerned Sarah was just lucky he wasn't more like his father. Hamold never tolerated backtalk while Jareth was growing up. If he knew all the lengths Jareth went to in order to accommodate his wife… he would probably laugh at best and at worst call Jareth out as a incompetent disciplinarian and demand he either make up for it right away or step aside and allow Hamold himself to carry out a firm punishment on Sarah. Jareth's lip curled at the mere thought of either scenario.

Sarah didn't look as hurt anymore, but she did clam up on him, pulling her knees up to her chest and leaning forward to rest her chin on them, watching the water in front of her rather than looking at him.

Jareth took the opportunity presented him this time and leaned back against the tub once more to close his eyes.

"D-did you wanna talk about it?"

Jareth opened his eyes reluctantly, a frown pulling at his brows again. "What?"

Sarah blanched like she was rethinking having said anything at the look he gave her. "You said you… you had a less than pleasant day. Do you wanna talk about it?"

Although he was a little surprised she was even asking him that, as if she cared or something, Jareth thought about Lilith and the conversation he had had with her again… which only made him tense up again with frustration. "No," he huffed, closing his eyes once more and trying to focus on the water, but his bad mood was re-established once more. Sarah was unfortunately close to him for this kind of mood he was in. "Sarah, 'wanna' is not a word. Next time say 'want to'; it sounds so much more intelligent."

The sound of rushing water denied Jareth his R&R once more and he opened his eyes just in time to see Sarah climbing out of the tub, her movements sharp and jerky with her own anger now. Jareth said nothing and simply watched her as she grabbed a towel, trying not to let him see the scowl on her face as she wrapped it around herself and marched out of the bathroom.

Jareth thought about going after her, he had not dismissed her after all. He was too tired though and he knew if he went after her now his temper would likely get the best of him. He decided against it and sunk down deeper into the water now that he had the whole tub to himself, submerging till his face was all that remained on the surface, unable to hear anything outside of the tub as he tried to think of ways to sooth his bruised ego when it came to the Lilith incident. With the Underground women it had been easy. First he had wiped out their demon spawn changelings, than with Sarah he had finished the job with the hags themselves. Lilith was more likely to be a punishable offense if he even did manage to have her snuffed out, which was unlikely considering her powers. Besides, whenever she needed to she tended to travel amongst the dreams of Aboveworlders when she needed to lay low for a while. She would be likely to do that now for a time.

Last night after the last bout of love making between him and Sarah he had gently coaxed her for details of what all Lilith had done to her. Sarah hadn't been explicit, but she had told him enough for him to know that Lilith had managed to kiss her, and he was willing to bet it was the demon's saliva that had caused the continued frenzy Sarah had come back to him in.

Jareth let out another sigh and resurfaced from the water, standing up to climb out of the bath as well. He used a towel to pat himself dry, wrapping it loose around his narrow hips before reentering his bedroom with the intent of wrapping Sarah up in his arms and falling asleep.

She wasn't in the room though. Mavias's crib housed his sleeping figure, but that was all. Jareth hadn't been locking her room door against her for any reason, so he tried there next. She was there, but he was surprised when he opened the door to see her standing next to her bed, pulling on some black leggings that were footless and incased her like a second skin, leaving little to the imagination. She noticed him in the door, and made a few final tugs on the waistband before turning to him. "I never really got a chance to show you some of the things I got at the market," she mumbled, still messing with the tight leggings. "I found these yoga pants, they're a little small, but I can fit into them well enough, I just cant wear any short shirts with them… which actually shouldn't be a problem since I don't own any shirts anymore. Do they look alright?"

She wasn't acting cross anymore, too focused on her purchase at the moment. Despite having seen her in similar things before, Jareth still couldn't quite get used to seeing women in such fashions. He found skirts left a male to wonder so much more about such things, where as this way a woman's legs were displayed for everyone. In this case… more than Sarah's legs were displayed with the tight fit and he could barely keep his brows from shooting up when she turned slightly and he caught a look at the effect of her backside in such things. She was still topless, holding the bath towel up against her chest modestly and he couldn't help but suddenly wonder how she would look with a pair of boots on over the strange garment.

His mental pictures told him she would look extremely fetching and he went over to her, not knowing or caring what 'yoga' was but wanting to have a closer inspection of the pants.

X

Sarah jumped slightly when she felt Jareth's hand stroke over the soft material on her bum. She hadn't realized he had come so close to her. His hand stroke her cheek again and she looked back at him over her shoulder, still holding the towel up against her chest. He didn't look cross anymore, too caught up in her new purchase. His face was slowly turning more and more appreciative as his eyes traveled over her bum down to her thighs and legs. That was actually a good thing possibly, if he liked them he was more likely to allow her to wear them casually. Maybe she would steal some shirts from Jareth's wardrobe to wear with them.

Jareth's hand stopped its stroking and he wordlessly reached up and tugged the towel from her arms. She gave it up with slight hesitation, allowing it to drop to the floor. The cold was no where near severe in her room anymore, but the air was still enough to cause puckering and she didn't miss it when Jareth's eyes roamed over her, feeling a slight blush warm her cheeks.

Jareth pulled her up against his naked torso, warm against her breasts as he wrapped his arms behind her and squeezed her bum firmly, incidentally pulling her flush against the towel at his hips enough that she knew instantly that he was well on his way to being fully aroused. "These are Aboveground lingerie?" he questioned her, squeezing again.

She had been surprised when she had come into her room to find her bag of purchases sitting on her bed waiting for her, Mavid must have left them there after she and Jareth made it from the hall to Jareth's bedroom last night. When she had seen it she had forgotten about her displeasure with Jareth in light of the prospect of trying on her new pants. "No, they're for workouts, but some just wear them around for the comfort."

"I don't want you to 'just wear them around' the castle." Jareth told her, placing kisses against her cheeks despite the frown that now marred her face.

"Why not? Who's going to care?" she demanded.

"I'm not the only male in this castle Sarah, these are very… exotic. Ladies do not wear such things."

He dipped down to kiss her, but she pulled back ever so slightly, not done with this conversation. "But Aboris is a doctor, Torik is from the Aboveground so he's seen girls in pants millions of times, and Mavid has seen me in just about every humiliating moment since I was brought here. I stuck to the rules of what I was allowed to buy from the market, so why not?!"

"Sarah watch your tone," Jareth warned her lightly. "Just because you own them doesn't mean you can go flashing them around at everyone. They are still contraband after all. I have a musical device from the Black Magic Market, called an electric guitar, but I cant just go play it full blast whenever I wish."

Actually now that he reminded her of it she had wanted to ask him ever since she had first seen the guitar he was talking about down in the music room. "How do you even play that? There's no electricity down here."

"Sarah, do not change subjects unless you are willing to drop the first one, but your answer is that I found a way to manipulate a little bit of magical current to seem comparable to an electrical current. It was a lot of time and patience to get it all worked out. About these pants, however, how about we settle this with a compromise rather than an argument."

Compromise?

Him?

Shocker!

Sarah managed to speak despite her deep surprise. "What compromise?"

Jareth relaxed against her again and after a little more bum-squeezing she did the same. He was really having a field day back there. "You can wear these around our rooms and the nursery as much as you like, but if you leave the mirror hall you must at least wear a long dress over them. Is that fair?"

It wasn't what she had initially wanted, and she still thought him a little silly for worrying about the other men in the castle over these, but she nodded her head, earning her another kiss on the cheek as Jareth's hands slipped under the fabric of the pants to cup her cheeks, walking her backwards till the backs of her knees hit the bed and she flopped back onto it. Jareth immediately placed himself between her legs, the towel he wore acting as a frail barrier as he rubbed against her, trailing kisses down her neck and chest. "Now we can move on to more important things," he murmured against her neck.

"Jareth wait, I'm still in the middle of my… time." she reminded him, gently pushing his shoulders back.

He didn't back off, rather sucked her breast in his mouth and twirled his tongue around the nipple, causing her to gasp and her head to momentarily fall back against the bed.

"This wasn't a problem yesterday," he reminded her before doing it again.

"You know why," she pouted, her cheeks heating in embarrassment. "Lilith's… weird magic."

"Does that make a difference in you allowing this now?" he questioned, the challenging undertones in his voice almost missed. His hands stilled over her breasts and his eyes were intense on hers as he waited for her response.

Before it had been a worry for her that sex would be painful or very different during her menstruation, but know she knew it wasn't that different. If anything she had felt slightly desensitized down there. The truth was the only reason she was hesitating now was that she was still a little upset at him for disregarding her so easily earlier but now wanted her to just lay down for him. It shouldn't work that way.

He was still scowling at her, waiting for a good answer.

"I- I haven't even gotten to show you what else I found," she pointed out, pushing against his shoulder with one hand while the other reached out to pull the bag closer to them.

Jareth curled his lip in annoyance but allowed her to actually push him back, readjusting his towel before turning to sit next to her on the small bed. Sarah opened up the coarse little bag and pulled out the book about animals, handing it over to him. "I got this, now there is a book here in a language I can read, and the pictures are great! I think the boys will enjoy it too," she told him, watching his face as he flipped through the book, looking a cross between bored and thoughtful."

"Hmm," was all he offered up.

Sarah reached into the bag and pulled out the little bottle of nail polish. "This is only half full, but I got this too. I got a couple dresses it should go with."

Jareth took the bottle from her when she offered it, turning it over in his hands. "What is this?"

Duh, she had already forgotten they didn't have that down here. That's why it was at the Black Magic Market. "It's paint for your nails." she took it back from him and unscrewed the cap, using the little brush to paint her pinky nail to show him, the purple color looking better than she had thought it would. "Girls in the aboveground do this all the time. Toenails too. You can get any color you want too. It's a huge thing there."

"Do the men use it?"

"Well, I've seen some guys with black nail polish I guess, but many just don't bother." Jareth's attention was still on the bottle and the polish on her finger, clearly intrigued.

"Uh, I guess if you did want to wear it on yours sometime though you can," she offered, realizing that there were no stipulations for nail polish on guys down here since there was none to speak of. On Jareth it was quite possible the other fae would think it to be stunning. "I did actually get you something though," she told him, reaching back into her bag for her last item. Jareth was surprised by her statement, setting the polish aside now to watch her. Sarah pulled out the pencil bag and unzipped it, "I wanted to give you the pens, and a couple of the markers. I thought maybe you would find them helpful with all the paperwork you and Mavid are always doing. I can show you how to work them sometime."

Jareth took the pens and markers she handed to him with a please grin on his face. "These I actually do know how to use. I have a few in my office from the Aboveground now as a matter of fact. They are close to running out of their ink, however." He took hold of her chin and turned her to him so he could kiss her. "This was very thoughtful of you and just what I needed, thank you. The…" he looked over the markers she had given him, "Shar-pies work like pens?"

Sarah smiled back at that. "It's pronounced Sharpies, and yeah pretty much the same. I'm keeping a couple so I can draw and write things in my free time, but I thought you would like some of them."

Jareth placed another kiss against her temple and wrapped his arm around her waist. "I thank you. I have something for you too as a matter of fact."

"You do?" Sarah asked, curious.

Jareth took hold of her hand with his free one and pulled her up from the bed. "Don't get too excited," he warned her, "It is not a new gift. It is in my room, where we should be."

Sarah had already known she would sleep in Jareth's room tonight, that being where Mavias was after all. After she grabbed her towel and wrapped it around her upper body once more he allowed him to lead her out of her room and back to his, waiting as he set his new pens and markers down and went over to his dresser, opening one of the doors and taking out a small box.

Sarah was very curious when he came back over to her, opening the little box for her. Sarah's heart dropped when she saw her signet ring waiting for her, the one that marked her as Jareth's queen. She closed her hand at her side, not keen on having it stuck on her finger again after having it off for a full day.

"It was no joy taking this off you, even if it was for your safety and just for the day," he told her. "Your right hand please."

She had no choice. If she refused he would no doubt turn furious. She held out her right hand and said nothing, staring at the floor, as he slipped the ring over her middle finger once more. She wouldn't be able to remove it.

Jareth held onto her hand once it was back on, running his thumb over the surface of the seal. She wished she could pull her hand away.

Jareth brought it up to his lips instead and kissed her knuckles. "You're mine once more," he told her softly, watching her reaction closely.

She couldn't help her shiver, but she tried to counter it by forcing a small fake smile and nodded her head once in understanding.

Jareth's intense eyes darted over her face, searching it before he seemed satisfied enough with what he saw. "Come with me to bed now. I want to have you tonight."

She pulled back this time when he went to pull her with him over to the bed. He looked back at her expectantly, one eyebrow cocked as if to say to her 'you're really going to deny me?!' Sarah licked her lips to wet them and Jareth's eyes traced the movement. "I- I'll sleep with you, that's fine. I'm feeling very tired though, so I think that's all I'm up for."

Jareth opened his mouth to say something but Sarah cut him off. "You said you wouldn't touch me unless I allowed it during my period," she reminded him, his mouth closing again and pressing into a thin line on his face. He was angry.

When he spoke his voice was tight and controlled. "I did… but if I have your permission than I'm keeping my promise."

There was a strained silence between them as Sarah battled in her head if she should give permission or not. Would he really learn anything about how he should treat her better from her denying him like this? Chances were he would just end up seeing it as her needing to treat _him_ better. She didn't want to let him 'have her' when he was acting like this towards her though, like she was a mere vessel for his pleasure and it was a crime for her to ever displease him.

"Sarah," Jareth whispered, his voice low and edged in warning. His hand tightened on hers ever so slightly. "Come to bed."

Sarah glanced over to the crib that held Mavias, wondering if Jareth was willing to risk waking him in a fit of anger. He would not touch her without permission, and couldn't for another few days… but he could still blow up on her if she said no. He had done it before. What did she have to gain?

If she said yes, that would make the promise he had given her worthless. There was no point in a promise to not take her without permission if he just bullied her into giving her permission. If she allowed it to work now he surely would do it again.

Sarah braced herself and pulled her hand from his.

Jareth's hand balled into a fist and he pulled it back away from her, his stance rigid with disbelief and anger. Sarah's matched his stance, but she was stiff with anxiousness and wariness. She also felt a little anger, however. Anger that Jareth could even think he had a right to be angry with her for turning him down tonight. As if he hadn't had her hundreds of times already, as if he wouldn't have her again after her flow had stopped. As if he had deserved pleasure from her at that moment.

When he hand shot out to point at the door between their rooms Sarah flinched, but stood her ground. "You'll sleep in your room tonight," he growled out at her.

"Mavias is in here, he will wake up yet tonight wanting fed or changed," she pointed out to him, her own voice surprisingly sharp.

Jareth's eyes darted over to the crib, his lip curling into a sneer before he let out a huff and threw his towel onto the floor, wrenching back the covers and practically fighting the bed as he climbed into it. "Fine!" he snapped, turning his back to her to curl up on the far side of the bed.

She probably would have laughed at how childish he was acting if she didn't know how much trouble that would get her into. She ignored him as best she could, wondering if she should go back to her room for a nightgown. It seemed almost wrong to deny him and then sleep nude next to him… and risky. She made up her mind and refused to so much as glance at him as she walked around the bed and back into her room. She changed quickly and came back into the room, glancing over to Jareth to see that his eyes were closed as though he were sleeping, but the frown that remained on his face was enough to tell her he wasn't really. She checked on Mavias one last time, seeing that he was sound asleep before climbing into bed next Jareth's tense form.

She didn't bother saying good night to Jareth, figuring she wouldn't waste her breath.


	39. Chapter 39

Beta for this chapter is ASunInWinter, whom I thank very much

X

"Hip-po, hippo. Can you say hip-po? That's a hip-po-pot-a-mus," Sarah cooed, pointing out the picture of a hippo from the animal book she had gotten at the Black Magic Market to Mavias, who she cradled against her so that he could sit. Mavias wasn't quite crawling yet, but he could roll like crazy and if you propped him up against something he could sit on his own… for a little while.

Mavias chewed on his fist and looked at the picture she was pointing to before he turned his head around to look up at her, his blue eyes wide as he took everything in. Sarah laughed when he offered his drool covered hand to her and grabbed a hand towel from next to her to wipe it off for him. She had learned to carry a towel with her everywhere she went with the boys. "That's ok, I already ate lunch," she laughed at him. "Look here Mavias," she said, pointing to another picture. "This one is a Fla-ming-o. Can you say flamingo?"

"He don't talked yet mama," Toby reminded her, looking up from his spot on the floor where he was playing war or something with his toy dragons. "Daddy try yesterday. He not talk."

"He will someday if we keep working at it," she said optimistically.

Toby just shrugged and turned back to his dragons, practicing explosion noises as he pretended they were shooting fire at everything.

Sarah turned back to her book, ready to continue, but Clora let out a bored sigh from next to her. "Why are you trying to get him to say the names of animals that will never mean anything to him? It's not like we have those beasts running around in the Underground. Those pictures are amusing, but shouldn't you be teaching him something more substantial? These are the days he's sucking up everything like a sponge after all."

"Learning about other cultures _is_ substantial," Sarah informed her curtly, "Even if it's just the animals of other cultures." She turned the page and couldn't help but smile. "Hey Toby," she smirked, turning the book around so he could see it. "Do you know what this is?" She pointed to the picture of the barn owl in flight on the page.

Toby looked at it for only a moment before smiling. "Daddy!"

Both Ishapelle and Clora chuckled at that as Sarah turned the book back around to face her and Mavias.

Torik was curled up on the couch with Ishapelle, fast asleep with his head in her lap. When they had laughed he had let out a snort and turned his head inwards toward Ishapelle's lap, causing all three women to chuckle a little harder and Ishapelle ran her hand through his light brown hair.

"Tomorrow is a big night then is it not?" Ishapelle smiled at Sarah once they had all calmed down.

Sarah knew what she was talking about. It had been a couple months or so now that Mavias had shared Jareth's room with them. Tomorrow the crib was going to be moved into the nursery with Toby, and Mavias would spend his first night without her. Jareth and Mavid would move the crib into the nursery to stay.

Honestly, she wasn't looking forward to it. Some nights Mavias would sleep all the way through, and he didn't cry near as much now… but what about those nights when he did wake up wanting her? She wouldn't be able to hear him unless he really started screaming during the night. She hugged him against her a little tighter. "I guess so," she sighed.

"You're not even a little thrilled?" Clora asked in disbelief. "You'll get to start sleeping through the nights again."

That did sound amazing… but still…

Sarah just shrugged and kissed the back of Mavias's head, pointing out another picture to him. "Li-on, Li-on."

Everyone in the room looked up when the door to the sitting room opened up. Normally they were never bothered during the day after they had eaten lunch. Sarah was surprised to see Jareth and Mavid standing in the doorway, a piece of paper folded in Jareth's hand.

Things between him and Sarah had been fluctuating between civil and pleasant lately, but she worried that something was the matter and could feel her heartbeat speed up from worry at the sight of him now. He didn't look pleased, but his eyes did not stay on her. Instead his gaze shifted over to Ishapelle, Torik having woken up from the noise of the doors banging open and was now moving to sit up next to her. Ishapelle looked confused as Jareth wordlessly held out the paper to her. "This came from your father," he said simply. Behind him Mavid stood rigid, his face marred with a deep frown like he was about to forcibly dismantle something.

Ishapelle was silent and still as her eyes went over the letter, twice.

Toby got up from the floor and went over to Jareth, pleased when he was picked up. Jareth held him on his hip, barely paying attention to him as Toby showed him his toy.

Sarah jumped when Ishapelle's head snapped up from the paper, her face pale as she locked eyes with her cousin. Jareth said nothing to her though, not seeming to know what to say. Was there something wrong with her father? Sarah was just about to ask what it was all about when Ishapelle finally found her voice.

"This came today?" she asked, her faint voice wavering.

"Just now," Jareth nodded. There was a long uncomfortable pause before Jareth spoke again. "I imagine you'll want to pack tonight or tomorrow, I can have you taken back to your home whenever you are ready to go."

 _Go?!_ Sarah's mind screamed even though her words failed her.

"What is it for bloody sakes?" Clora asked, sitting forward in her seat.

"Is everything alright?" Sarah asked, wincing at her own phrasing. Obviously everything wasn't alright. Ishapelle looked as though someone had just shot her in the foot for crying out loud!

Ishapelle refolded the letter just as Torik leaned over to look at it, concern all over his face at her reaction as well. "It's fine," Ishapelle whispered, trying to keep her voice steady. "Everything is fine. I– I am to be mar–married. Excuse me please," she choked out before a tear slipped down her cheek and Sarah could only stare in shock along with everyone else as Ishapelle clapped her hand over her mouth to muffle her sobs, darting around Jareth and Mavid for the door.

"Where she go?" Toby asked as he turned his head from the door back to his father, having picked up now that something was wrong.

Sarah didn't bother to fight her impulse, remembering how Ishapelle had comforted her the last time she had run from a room crying. She jumped up, dumped the book on the couch, and handed Mavias off to his own father, vaguely aware of Torik getting up to follow her as she hurried after Ishapelle, who was already down the hall and out of sight. Sarah knew she would run to her room and so wasn't worried over finding her or not. She glanced back to see Torik looked just as pale as Ishapelle had.

"She's getting married?!" She called over her shoulder to him, as though he knew anymore about it than she did… though maybe he did.

Torik just shook his head. "I didn't think so. I bet I know to who though, some nobleman was snooping around her. That was a long while back though, before we ever even came here to the Castle beyond the Goblin City. Her father thought they would be a good match but Ish didn't want it. I thought that was the end of the conversation. I can't think of who else it would be though. Her dad's kind of a prick, it would be just like him to pull this on her!" Torik growled angrily.

Sarah didn't fully understand the situation, but she wanted to do what she could to understand and help Ishapelle, who was clearly distraught over the news. They came up to Ishapelle's room at the same time and Sarah could already hear the female sobbing on the other side. She cast a helpless look to Torik, who returned it. He reached out and tried the handle, which was locked against him. He tried knocking lightly on the door. "Ish, Ish can I come in? We can talk about this baby," he pleaded.

"G–go away Torik, please," came her strangled voice, followed by more sobs.

Torik looked crestfallen as he simply stood there, unsure what else to do but obviously not wanting to do as told.

Sarah tried, too. "Ishapelle, is there anything I can do?"

There was a long silence, Sarah wondered if the female had even heard her. The lock suddenly clicked and the door opened just a crack, Ishapelle's tear-streaked face coming into view. "Just Sarah please," she whispered, not looking up from the floor in an effort to avoid Torik's eyes.

Sarah stepped past Torik, but the teen inched forward as though he thought about forcing his way in, thinking better of it and stepping back. Ishapelle closed the door behind her and relocked it, wiping the tears from her face pitifully as another sob escaped her.

Sarah stood by her in the room, unsure what she could do for Ishapelle besides just being there.

Ishapelle wiped at her eyes once more, sniveling softly. "I- I can't believe it, I can't believe it," she handed the letter over to Sarah—thrust it at her, more like—before going over to sit down on the side of her bed to sob some more.

Sarah unfolded the crinkled letter and skimmed over it, seeing Ishapelle's father's writing explaining to Jareth that he apologized but her service to his wife would have to end immediately due to a marriage that he had arranged between her and some 'Lord Bastile'. It simply went on to ask that she and Torik be returned to him before the week was out.

Sarah looked up at her, still lost as to what she could possibly say. "Have you ever met this Bastile guy?"

Ishapelle had her hand over her mouth again, nodding her head in confirmation.

"Is he mean?" Sarah asked, worried for Ishapelle.

Ishapelle's tears died down just a bit, "H–he's never been mean in front of me no, but I hardly know him and he's so… boring! My father only cares about the furthering of our family's namesake. Marrying me off to some lord would do that. The only reason he wants me is because he's not good looking enough to attract a noble-lady. He has a scar across his eye. He–he got it while playing a game of cards… one of the cards got thrown in his face and cut him. What kind of male gets permanently scarred by a piece of paper?!" Ishapelle laid back on the bed once more, sobbing deeply into her arms.

While the story could almost be funny, it was hard for Sarah to laugh about it when Ishapelle was so upset by the whole situation. She could understand the horribleness of being forced into a marriage you didn't want with a man you didn't really want.

Sarah remembered how harshly Tallia had reacted to it when Mavid gave her a small scar on her face. She didn't fully understand why, but she knew that the fae abhorred scars or marring of most any kind no matter how trivial they were.

Sarah wasn't sure what else to say that would be of any help, sitting on the bed next to Ishapelle and resting her hand on the female's back as she sobbed. After a moment she regained herself a little more. (A bit confusing, grammar-wise. It's not immediately clear that you mean Ishapelle since Sarah was the last 'her' you referred to, and 'regained herself' is a little unclear. I'd suggest "After a moment the sobbing woman gained a little more composure." or something equivalent.) "He's hardly a male, really, Torik is more a male than he is! He's cowardly and meek and fears my father. After the wedding my father will run him ragged. I hardly think he would even have the strength to keep an erection!" she bit out with more venom than Sarah had ever heard her use before. Sarah fought hard to fight off her blush at the things she had never expected to hear from Ishapelle of all people came flying out of her painted pink lips. "Please don't think me low for saying these foul things," Ishapelle begged her softly, "But I just can't bear the thought of being under that male's marital control!"

Ah yes, the belief the fae had that a wife was no more than a piece of property to her husband. Sarah remembered grimly how Jareth had taken her that first time, reasoning that a wife couldn't say no to her husband and that rape didn't exist past marriage. Sarah looked over to Ishapelle in worry despite the female's biting words, "Ishapelle… can I ask you… that is… are you a virgin?"

Ishapelle stopped crying for a moment, wiping her eyes in her confusion. "Wha– no, I'm not a virgin. I know I do not look it to you, but I have been alive for a very long time Sarah, almost as long as Jareth." Ishapelle reasoned. "And besides, I have Torik."

Sarah tried to hide her cringe. She should have probably known that that was happening, but she still thought Torik looked too young for a grown woman to have a real interest in. He still looked like he was in the middle of his teen years to her anyway. She had to remind herself that there was a solid chance he was older than she was in actuality, since he had been in this time-defying place for so long, but Ishapelle had first gotten him when he was actually around fifteen hadn't she? Sarah refused to make herself ask when that had started happening. It didn't seem like the kind of thing that would have bothered Torik in any case. Thinking back to the Aboveground, with Ishapelle's soft blonde hair and delicate features it was hard for Sarah to picture any teenage guy saying no. She fought once more to hide her cringe regardless.

"That's another thing, too," Ishapelle sniffled. "What about Torik? What if Bastile and he don't get along, or Bastile demands I leave him behind. I could never do that! What if Bastile is mean to him behind my back?" She let out a shaky breath and Sarah reached over to take hold of her hand in support. "And then there's Torik. He's from your world and he still has trouble understanding the way of things every now and then. The first time I laid with a male after we had been together he had been so hurt. He had refused to speak to me at all for days without worry about reprimand. After we had a very long and complex talk about it things were a little easier. He would once in a while lay with another servant or I would lay with another male. But these occasions are rare and I never put anyone else before him. That would change with my husband." Ishapelle's troubled face suddenly lit up with worry anew. "Oh god, what if Bastile wants him?! Torik has never been with a male before, it would hurt him!"

Sarah's mind was racing and blank at the same time, shocked by these fears and sure that they were all things Ishapelle had reason to fear, Torik too of course. She had no idea what she would do if she was in Torik's situation, to be a 'pet' to a fae she had never known before they bought her, and then to have no choice but stand back till called upon as her 'owner' was with someone else. What if Jareth had made her his 'pet' and not his queen? Would she have to go through the same things? Torik had once told her that she was lucky in a different kind of way. God he had been so right, and she had been too naïve to even see that compared to him her complaints were pretty thin.

She suddenly wanted to run out into the hall and hug Torik as hard as she could without hurting him. Was he out there thinking about all this, or was he even aware of this yet?

Ishapelle continued to snivel beside her. "What if he doesn't allow me the freedom to sleep with others besides him? These next few days could be my last chance for such things and I wasn't even aware of it."

 _So much for that then_ , Sarah couldn't help but think to herself. If Ishapelle was talking about wanting one last hurrah before she was returned, her pickings were extremely slim. She had already refused Mavid, and cousin or not Sarah couldn't see her approaching Jareth. That pretty much would leave Aboris.

Actually as she thought about it that didn't seem like such a bad pairing. Aboris was smart and caring and his work demanded that he be gentle.

Actually thinking about such things got Sarah curious about something and she wondered if taking Ishapelle's mind off the situation of marriage for a little bit wouldn't do some good for her. "Ishapelle, can I ask you a question?"

Ishapelle simply nodded her head. Wiping another tear from her face.

"What do you think of Aboris?"

"T–the elf healer in Jareth's keep?" Ishapelle murmured, "I do not know, he is nice and an excellent physician. Why do you ask?"

Sarah suddenly felt her cheeks burn and chickened out on even suggesting Ishapelle think of him sexually in any way. Besides, Ishapelle might have said that Torik was more okay with her seeking other's beds now and then, but it still felt to Sarah like she was betraying him by bringing up Aboris at all. "Ah, I was just curious… never mind."

Ishapelle gave her a confused look, but allowed the matter to drop.

Sarah shifted uncomfortably next to her, another question on her mind now that they were on this subject. She took a minute to think of how to approach it and decided she would just barrel into it like she tended to do in most every awkward situation. "A while back I was talking to Torik, one of the rare occasions you weren't around, and he mentioned that you had turned Mavid down flat once." She gave the female a minute for that to sink in and when Ishapelle stopped crying to look up in surprise Sarah continued on. "I totally wouldn't have said yes either, but can I ask why you didn't? I mean, I've seen for myself that he still wants you, or likes you, or whatever. He's not mean to you like he is to me."

Ishapelle stared back at her, utterly surprised as a blush started to spread over her cheeks. "Torik told you about that?"

Sarah suddenly hoped she hadn't just gotten him into a lot of trouble. "You don't have to answer if you really don't want to."

There was a long and awkward silence between them in which Ishapelle said nothing, but she wasn't crying anymore either, her mind off her predicament. "I– I didn't say no to him for any _one_ reason, there were several that caused me to never seek his attentions."

Sarah didn't press, feeling like maybe she had stepped over the line by bringing it up at all.

Ishapelle dug the toe of her shoe into the floor absently. "While it's not the main reason at all, there are the scars on his back, all over his back, but many servants have them. There is no attendant that doesn't have a fair share. Even Erib, Jareth's father's attendant, has them."

Sarah tried to hide her reaction, turning her face away so Ishapelle wouldn't see her lip curl at the physical shallowness and barbaric custom of the fae race.

"But there are other and far more prominent reasons I've turned him down… and it was more than just once. He's cruel to Torik, and selfish and cynical. But honestly the main reason I turn him down is because I know that he prefers to be very rough. I've never had anyone treat me anything but gently. If I told him not to be rough he would have to obey because of his station, but I don't wish to be in charge of the sex. I like being… coddled during the process I suppose. And Mavid is so aggressive I wonder if he would even know how to be gentle." Ishapelle let out a sigh. "So I turned him down, and continued to do so, even when he asked your husband to step in and try to persuade me. Bear in mind that that was a very long time ago. Jareth was still married to Carrie then."

Sarah just sat and listened to Ishapelle, everything she was saying about Mavid's downfalls being completely true as far as Sarah knew. She could have guessed as much herself, but she had wondered if there was any other reason.

Ishapelle turned to her then. "May I ask you a question now?"

It was only fair, Sarah nodded her head.

"Do you not find other beds because Jareth won't allow it, or because you wish to simply stay in his?"

Now it was Sarah's face that practically caught fire. "Ah, er… I guess… It's certainly not because I want to stay in his bed… I just… we've never talked about anything like that really." She could vaguely remember him telling her that they didn't live as monogamously here as they tended to in the Aboveground. Well… not that everyone in the Aboveground was monogamous, but down here they didn't sneak around about it.

"Really? Have you ever thought of it? I know you haven't had a chance to meet many males yet, but there is Aboris, or Loki has a reputation…"

Sarah laughed out loud at those notions, clapping her hand over her mouth to stifle it. She had never expected Ishapelle to turn this around and try to push Aboris off on her! "I'm sorry for laughing," she gasped, still doing so, "But no, I've never even considered either of them. I've never considered anyone. Honestly, I try to avoid sex where I can when Jareth is involved, so I'm not thinking of adding anyone else to my bedpost."

Ishapelle seemed a little surprised, but said nothing more about it.

They sat next to each other a little longer before Ishapelle spoke up again. "You know… some good might come out of it though; the marriage, that is. I might become pregnant." She placed her hand over her flat stomach wistfully. "Even if he were mean to me, I think I could endure that if I were able to carry a child to term. I would be an honored female after that, and I would get to know that wonderful miracle of childbirth."

Sarah didn't interrupt Ishapelle because she sounded as though it was some sort of life's dream of hers. Sarah had seen videos of childbirth in her wellness classes in school though and there seemed to be very little that was 'wonderful' or 'miraculous' about it. Actually she thought it compared very closely to the movie 'Alien' when the alien busted out of the guy's chest. If you watched the two things together the noises sounded just about the same. Sarah touched her own stomach because of the queasiness that the thought brought to her.

She was pulled, literally, from her thoughts when Ishapelle suddenly wrapped her arms around her and pulled her close into a hug, which Sarah returned. "I'll still be able to see you once I'm a lady, but I'm going to miss you." Ishapelle whispered, her voice tight with emotion. "As much as I loathe the mess of this castle, I enjoyed my time here to some degree."

Sarah knew Ishapelle meant it as more of a compliment than what it came out as, and told the female she would miss her too, feeling the tears pushing at her own eyes now and the tip of her nose tickled as she tried to hold them back. It was no use, though, and some of them escaped her, rolling down her cheeks onto the female's shoulder, and she could feel a wetness on her own shoulder where Ishapelle's chin rested.

The grip Ishapelle had on her didn't let up for some time, and Sarah didn't mind it in the least as she hugged the female back. Tonight could be the last time she saw her for some time. "Hey," Sarah piped up, "Maybe we should try to give him Clora instead," she teased.

Ishapelle laughed a shaky laugh through her tears at that, unable to help herself and Sarah chuckled too as she wiped at her own cheeks.

"I suppose I should let Torik in now," Ishapelle sighed, "He and I have to talk about this."

X

Jareth suppressed a yawn behind his hand as he stood with Mavias in his arm, bringing his hand back down to run through Toby's curls, which were quickly starting to grow into his face again. Toby was wrapped around his leg, sitting on his father's foot rather than the ground because he was tired. It was close to his normal nap time after all. Jareth had kept him up a tad longer, however, so that he could be awake to see Ishapelle off. They all were standing in front of the stables, Clora and Sarah beside themselves as they hugged his cousin and bid her good-bye time and again. Ishapelle was putting on a weak smile despite the tears rolling down her cheeks as she made minimal eye contact with everyone around her. His brow raised when Sarah embraced Torik in a tight hug but Jareth stayed his ground, bouncing Mavias a little more to calm his initial instinct to part Sarah from the lowly pet.

He had expected Mavid to be in a sour mood, his eyes flicking over to where the male stood, strapping the last of the luggage to the back of the carriage wordlessly and with a since of neutrality. He seemed more bored than anything.

Last night when the letter had come Jareth had wanted to try bargaining with his father's illegitimate half-sister's husband, but was sure that he would never be able to convince the male to so much as allow his cousin another week's stay. After all, why allow a daughter to be a servant when she could be a proper lady?

Yesterday Mavid had been in a sour mood and had retired early, and Sarah had hardly left Ishapelle's side after supper. Jareth had practically had to pull her to bed. This morning Sarah was still in a down-trodden mood, but Mavid was considerably better, far from whistling a happy tune, but he wasn't acting hostile, not even towards Ishapelle's pet and Jareth hadn't missed it as Sarah had when Torik shot a glare at Mavid openly once or twice, neither of which the male returned.

Since he was for the most part immobilized by Toby hanging off his leg Ishapelle was kind enough to approach him for her farewell. Jareth used his one free hand to bring her own to his lips. "I sincerely thank you for all you have contributed towards helping my wife adjust to her life here. I hope that you have as much comfort when you settle into your new home as well," he bid her formally.

"Thank you, cousin of mine," Ishapelle bowed her head graciously. "I hope you will allow Sarah to visit me often, and that you both will attend the wedding."

Jareth nodded his head in agreement and kissed her hand once more. He paused as he did so, his eyes flicking over the flesh of her wrist that was just visible from underneath the long sleeve of her modest gown. There looked to be a mark there as if it had been bound, but she pulled her hand back quickly once she saw his gaze had found it. She refused to meet his eyes then, turning them to the ground instead with a pink tint coloring her cheeks. Jareth decided not to question her about it, holding up Mavias for her to say good bye to, fighting his fae instincts to pull the babe back when her fingers reached out and ghosted over the babe's arm. Toby was trickier, refusing to stand up and say good bye properly. Ishapelle bid him goodbye, having to settle for Toby waving goodbye to her half-heartedly.

Jareth rolled his eyes. He would have to speak to his son about manners later.

Sarah and Ishapelle embraced in one last hug before the carriage that her father had sent for her was boarded and the coachman cracked his whip.

Sarah watched the carriage till it was past the castle gates, turning back to Jareth with her arms crossed over her chest, looking just a little bit lost. Jareth reached out his one free arm and she stepped into it without hesitation, accepting his comfort as he hugged her against him, placing a kiss against her temple before dipping down to place one against her lips. She allowed him to do so, slipping out of his grasp afterwards to stoop down and pry Toby from his leg; he was thankful for that, as his foot had started to fall asleep.

Toby whined in protest but offered up no more fight than that as he stood up, giving Sarah the chance to lift him. Jareth held back a laugh when she grunted under his son's gaining weight. "You're starting to get too big for this Toby," she whispered to him.

"I not too big," the blonde boy insisted with a yawn.

"Let's get these two up to bed," Jareth sighed, "It's long past their nap time."

"I no tired," Toby muttered against Sarah's shoulder, were his head had slumped.

Sarah looked to Jareth and rolled her eyes and he returned with a knowing smirk, which caused her to smile too.

They all went back inside, Mavid leading the way so he could rush off any goblins that got too close to the babes. There were a few times he had to, but nothing too worrisome. Clora broke off from them to return to her room, complaining about how boring the castle was going to be with no one else there. Everyone ignored her.

Jareth, Mavid, herself and the children all moved on to the nursery, putting the kids down for their nap. Mavias was already asleep by that time and Jareth lowered him into his crib, newly located just a few feet from Toby's in the nursery. Mavid came over to the crib and reached down to run his hand over his son's face and arms for a while, a ghost of a smile nearing his lips.

"Can't we keep him in our room for just one more week?" Sarah spoke up from next to Jareth, actually surprising him since he hadn't noticed her approach. "He still cries some nights. What if he needs something?"

"He slept through last night, and the night before that," Jareth pointed out to her.

Mavid stayed out of the conversation entirely, contenting himself with studying his son's features. Jareth was sure he was listening in regardless though.

"He woke up the night before that though," Sarah countered.

"He will be fine," Jareth sighed, although a small part of him wanted to give in to her on this one. She wasn't the only one nervous about this, but it was about time for Mavias to start learning to put himself back to sleep if he should wake up. He would be tended to right before he went to bed and right when he woke up anyway so really it was just a few hours that were being debated here. Tonight he would spend his first night unwatched in the nursery.

Jareth turned to his wife and placed a kiss against her temple once more. "Mavid and I have some work to do yet before supper, don't allow them to sleep too long this time," he instructed her firmly, remembering how hard it had been to get them to sleep for the previous night.

"What am I supposed to do till then?" Sarah asked under her breath, almost like she hadn't really meant for him to hear it.

With Ishapelle gone and Clora sulking in her room there was no one to keep her attention. Maybe just as it was time for Mavias to start learning a tiny bit of self-reliance, it was also time for his Sarah to do the same.

"How about I have Mavid bring you your mail and you can go through and sort out your invitations and letters?" It had been something she had expressed an interest in doing some time ago. Surely that would keep her busy, give her a sense of responsibility, and he and Mavid could easily go through and correct any of her wrong decisions of what to accept and what to decline. If she had to write a letter in response to anything he would see it before it went out so there was no way for her to cause any trouble with that. Jareth mentally patted himself on the back for his own genius.

Sarah had actually perked up a tad bit at that, obviously not knowing that he planned to redo anything she decided on anyway if he didn't like it. "Can I really?"

Jareth nodded his head and placed one last kiss against her knuckles, ignoring the stare Mavid was giving him from under his black lashes. He knew already what Jareth meant by letting her go through the mail. "I'll send them to your room."

Once they were out of the nursery and halfway to the study Mavid let out a sigh next to him. "I've already sorted that mail into its categories. She's just going to mix them all up again."

It was hard to feel sorry for him over something that took Mavid five seconds to do. "You can just re-sort it when she is done. This is something I actually do want her to be able to take care of on her own one day. It can't always be just you and I running this castle while she tends to the children. While that's fine for now, they're growing up quickly and it will be just around the corner that they will be occupied with tutors. Unless she becomes pregnant and needs to see to the care of another baby she will need to become more of a use to me. I don't want an idle queen any more than the labyrinth does."

Mavid nodded his head after a pause. "I have to agree with that. Remember that Queen Caradette we learned about growing up? You remember, that dwarf queen that spent so much of the Dwarf Kingdom's wealth on wardrobes, trips and such that the king had to order her head to be cut off just to appease the kingdom."

Jareth's stomach plunged at the thought of ever having to do such a thing in repentance for something Sarah had done. "That's a stupid comparison to bring up Mavid," he growled unappreciatively.

They reached the study and Jareth sat down to his desk as Mavid gathered up the mail to take to Sarah. Jareth looked up when he noticed that Mavid's smile was still ghosting around his lips. "So out with it, why are you in such an agreeable mood today? I would have thought with the events of today you would have been just as disagreeable as you had been last night."

Mavid shrugged, but his smile widened. "Things can change in the course of one night."

"Ah huh," Jareth drawled, not buying such a vague answer for a moment. "So might I ask what changed?"

Mavid's grin faltered just the smallest bit. "It depends on if you really want to know, I suppose."

A feeling of reproach curled inside Jareth's stomach and he stood up from his chair again. He had his guesses, largely based on Ishapelle's actions around him earlier. "Just tell me," he forced himself to say.

Mavid seemed to have second thoughts on it one last time before shrugging his shoulders and allowing his grin to come back to his face. "Last night Ishapelle changed her mind," was all he said, and all he needed to.

Jareth's jaw dropped even though he had suspected as much and a lifetime of conditioning forced him to close his mouth right away. "You can't be serious?" he asked, very much in awe that his cousin had done such a thing. While she was ever-polite, he could remember how adamant she was about her refusal when Mavid had asked Jareth to approach her on the subject. She had seemed somewhat frightened by the idea, fully aware of Mavid's reputations for being extremely aggressive.

Mavid's grin couldn't get any wider and he actually laughed. "I am, though, very serious. It shocked me too, but last night she was suddenly in my doorway."

Jareth narrowed his eyes on his attendant. "You didn't hurt her did you?" he asked. Not really wanting any graphic details about his cousin or what happened.

"You saw her today, didn't she look fine to you?" Mavid pointed out; although Jareth knew he was side-stepping the question.

She hadn't seemed hurt or in physical pain, but he knew Mavid had his ways. He still didn't understand why she had changed her mind, but considering the factors he suspected it had to do in some way with her engagement. Females were odd creatures. It certainly explained Mavid's manner, though, to be so cheerful today after having realized a goal that had been centuries in the making at long last.

Jareth turned back to his paperwork, which was once more piling up, to keep his mind from trying to picture the male he considered like a bother with a female who was very much considered a strict cousin. Instead he tried to think about Sarah, and the lovely way her legs had wrapped around him last night now that she was finished with her cycle and couldn't tell him 'no'. Tonight they would have their room baby-free for the first time in a while now, which meant he wouldn't have to hold back.

"Just take those letters to Sarah," Jareth ordered, picking up one of the new pens Sarah had gifted to him so that he might get some work done for the kingdom before supper time.

X

Sarah was in her room, using some paper for letters from her little desk that Jareth had replaced after she broke her last one almost a week ago and the pencils she had bought for herself to doodle out a picture of a zebra in her animal book. She had never been much of an artist, however, and it looked more like a striped pig in her opinion. She was just killing time waiting for her mail, however.

Much of the items she had broken in her room during her breakdown had been replaced by this point: her desk and vanity, even the mirror. Jareth had never given her any of it outright, things would just appear in her room now and then. She might come back to find her little shelf loaded with a new book sometimes, or a new piece of jewelry sitting in her vanity drawer. Gradually it seemed like everything was returning to normal. _With one or two improvements_ , Sarah thought to herself as she rubbed her legs together under her skirts so that the material of her yoga pants rubbed against her skin comfortably. Whether or not she had to cover them with dresses, any time they were clean Sarah loved to wear her pants. Even with a dress she still felt more modern to have them underneath rather than to have nothing. With her leggings she didn't have to worry near as much about her skirts riding up some if she was running around or playing on the floor with Toby and Mavias.

A knock on her door made her smile because she knew what it was. "Come in," she called, moving her crappy drawing aside so she could get up from her bed. As Mavid opened her door she went over to meet him in the doorway, wanting her mail, but not really wanting him in her room. He handed it over to her wordlessly, hovering in the doorway as she took it with a smile, which faltered slightly when she looked down at it.

"A lot of these have been opened," she pointed out to him, trying to keep the edge out of her voice even though she should have guessed as much. Jareth had told her before that she wouldn't get to be the only one to see her mail long ago. It still miffed her though.

Mavid just stared back at her, clearly not caring about her sour comment. "Just make sure I get it all back when you're done going through it… please," he added on as an after-thought.

Sarah fought not to roll her eyes and turned back to her mail, pausing from flipping through it when she realized that Mavid was making no move to leave her doorway. She looked back up to him and waited, but he neither moved nor spoke as he stood there, looking at the door frame rather than her.

"What is it?" she asked, figuring there must be a reason for him to stall.

"I don't-" he broke off to clear his throat, still intently focused on the frame. "I don't hate you."

For a moment Sarah didn't realize what he was even talking about, but he went on.

"Back at the black magic market, you said that I hated you. I don't hate you." his dark blue eyes flicked over to hers then. "I know how you are with my son. You are kind and good to him when you don't have to be. You treat him very well and I know you care for him just as you care for Jareth's son. It's… hard to harbor hate for someone when they care so much for something you love."

Sarah was practically paralyzed with shock, unable to do much more than stand there with her mouth slightly agape. She had never expected that.

"Ah, ok," she finally managed, still stunned.

Mavid gave a final and somewhat awkward nod of his head and turned to leave finally.

Sarah stopped him from turning away at the last moment by reaching out to his arm, pulling her hand back quickly almost as soon as she touched the bare skin of his shoulder, left uncovered by his vest. "Wait, I-" this was more than awkward. "Thank you for telling me that," she finished lamely. She had stopped him for _that_? Sarah inwardly scowled at herself.

Mavid paused once more. "Don't misunderstand, I don't hate you, but I don't entirely like you still."

 _Well… great._

"My feeling towards you are… confusing. I will never understand why Jareth believes he loves you, nor do I really want to. I still hate it when you treat him wrongly and if I had a say in anything Jareth does you would have been severely whipped far more than just a handful of times by now."

Just as Sarah's face grew hot and she contemplated slamming the door in his face he slid his boot forward in the doorway, as if anticipating her to do just that. "However," he continued, "I think I understand now why he has never rid himself of you, and why he has never been able to bring himself to hate you. I understand a bit more of what he's been telling me all along, about choosing you because first and foremost you were the very best thing for his son. I believe you are that for mine as well."

The fae all seemed to have a hard time saying anything profoundly nice without throwing in sideways slams and underhanded comments, but Sarah feared that was just something she was getting used to the more time she spent around them. Mavid's comments didn't bug her near as much as they would have once upon a time, and she could tell he was being sincere in what he was telling her. The fact that he at least acknowledged her love for Mavias was in a small way very touching, although she was still shocked as it was coming from Mavid. Sarah swallowed down her bitterness at his other comments and just focused on that. "Thank you Mavid, I appreciate that."

Mavid nodded his head, glancing to the floor once more for a moment before looking her right in the eyes. "May I ask you a very bold question?"

She couldn't see the harm, curiosity caused her to nod her head in consent. "Go ahead."

"You said you do not hate me. Do you still hate Jareth?"

Leave it to him to make her jaw drop twice in one conversation.

He stood his ground and stared right into her eyes, his brow set in his determination to receive an answer to a question that seemed colossal to her.

 _What kind of question is that?_ Sarah thought to herself in shock. Did she still hate Jareth?

She was silent for a long time, glaring down at the floor as she thought about Mavid's question. She had every right to hate him, stealing her from her home, imprisoning her, tricking her, raping her, striking her, trying to control her every move. There were other things too, things that didn't take away what he had done to her, but things that had also happened. Like him kissing her softly, surprising her with the black magic market, inviting Dee to visit her, upholding his promise to accept her refusals during her period despite his own wants, holding her close to him in the middle of the night to keep her warm from the chill. But all that paled in comparison when she thought about how he was with both the boys. How deeply he loved them and cared for them just as much as she did. He was so good to Toby, teaching him and helping him, and how he would seek out spending time with the both of them. She didn't love Jareth, she was sure of that, but she loved how he was with the boys, and sometimes she could enjoy the way he treated her too.

"I guess… I guess it's kind of like you said; it's hard to feel real hatred for someone when they love something you care for."

Mavid accepted her answer with a single nod of his head, removing his boot from the doorway.

Again, however, he paused there rather than taking leave of her.

Sarah dreaded her question even as it left her lips. "Is there something else?" She fought off her wince when he nodded his head. He had just asked her if she hated Jareth still. She couldn't think of anything bigger than that that would even possibly still give him pause. If he was going to ask if she loved Jareth she was already prepared to shake her head no.

"Normally I would never bring it up, but being from the Aboveground and utterly naïve to many of the customs of the Underground and of the fae I simply think you should know something."

Sarah leaned against the door frame then, again trying not to roll her eyes at him calling her naïve. It was true, but he didn't need to point it out. "Okay, what is it?"

"As queen of this castle you have say over its subjects within the laws and rules laid out by the king. As one of the subjects under the command of both of you, I am informing you that if and when Jareth allows you to roam from his bed if you so wish to seek mine I will not turn you away nor ask Jareth to stop your advances. I am subject to your requirements."

Her thoughts were frozen this time she was so at a loss for how to react.

Mavid gave a final bow to her. "That is all; remember to return those letters when you are done with them… please." he tacked on again before turning and striding down the hall and out of sight. Sarah stood in the doorway, feeling more shocked and confused than she had in a very long time until she could no longer hear his footsteps. She couldn't believe…

Like she would ever!

He had such nerve! She slammed the door shut and went over to her bed in a huff. Plopping down on the side and tearing into the first envelope, which was an invitation to sock-knitting party being thrown by a group of elderly sprites.

X

Sarah stood back in the doorway of the nursery, looking on as Jareth lowered Mavias into his crib to sleep for the whole night. Toby was on the other side from his father, watching through the bars as the babe was moved into his room. He was actually excited for this, bouncing on his toes when Mavias saw him and rolled over to stare back at him, making his little baby sounds.

"I get a toy for him to sweep wit!" Toby insisted, running over to his toy chest.

"He might enjoy one of your stuffed animals," Jareth suggested, turning his attention over to Sarah as she came into the nursery. She hadn't said anything about what had been said between herself and Mavid earlier, sitting quietly and uncomfortably through dinner without once looking up to Mavid or Jareth. She planned to, certainly, but the chance hadn't come up yet. She had spent a good chunk of time going over her mail, but there was nothing that didn't sound boring or weird or just plain made up. How could an invitation for 'shrub riding' possibly be real? By the time she was done nixing everything it had seemed like a waste of her time altogether.

"Do we have to move him tonight?" she asked again, ignoring when Jareth rolled his eyes. "He's still not sleeping through the night. What if something happens?"

Jareth placed his hand over hers on the crib in comfort. "He will be just fine. He needs to learn to sleep through the night without a feeding. He's not a newborn any longer. He's turning over on his own now and learning to sit on his own. Part of growing into a toddler is learning a small bit of self-sufficiency."

He may have been right… but still…

"I found my uni-horn!" Toby shouted, running up to the crib with the stuffed unicorn, lowering his voice only a little when Jareth shushed him. "He'll like it," Toby insisted as he pushed the thing through the bars of the crib. "Uni-horns can use ter horns to stab tings and keel!"

Jareth looked absolutely appalled by his son's logic and Sarah fought hard to hold back her laugh when he explained to Toby that they would never do that. Toby didn't seem to be paying attention though, watching as Mavias reached out and tried to grab at the muzzle of the stuffed animal.

Jareth went around the crib and lifted Toby up in his arms. "Say goodnight Toby," he instructed as he held Toby next to Mavias's crib.

"Night night," Toby waved down to the babe. Sarah made her way around the crib as Toby kissed first Jareth good night, then leaned over his father's arms so he could give her a good night kiss as well.

Once both boys were settled in their cribs Jareth took Sarah's hand to lead her out, but she pulled back. "I thought I'd tell them a story."

Jareth nodded his head, ignoring Toby as he sat up and started bouncing in excitement. "Make it short though, and go to your own room when you are done; I'll have something laid out for you to wear to bed with me tonight."

Sarah was a little surprised by that, but nodded her head in agreement. She didn't protest when Jareth turned her to face away from him, standing still so that he could unlace the back of the dress and the corset for her so that she could take both off once she got to her room. She hated that she still had no way of getting dressed and undressed on her own with the dresses she was made to wear. It made her feel too much like a mindless doll to have others constantly helping her change clothes. Once Jareth had left the room she went and pulled the rocking chair over to sit between the two cribs, both sets of eyes from the boys on her as she did this.

"Magic tory!" Toby asked excitedly, having started calling her Aboveground stories her 'magic stories' and growing a love for them that she had once reserved for fairytales. "I wanna magic tory of camping again!

"Yes Toby, a magic story," she confirmed. "If you lay down and try to sleep, I'll tell you and Mavias about camping again." She had told him all about sleeping in tents and campfires and roasting marshmallows a few nights ago, and he had loved every word of it, at the point now that he would sometimes stop her to ask questions. Explaining what a marshmallow was had been sort of hard, but she had managed.

With a final good night to them both she had checked over Mavias once more to make sure he was alright, which he was. She wondered at staying with him a little longer even though he was already asleep, but knew Jareth would come looking for her if she tried that. Since she couldn't reach him without lifting him over the side of the crib for a kiss, she placed her fingers to her lips once again and placed them against his temple for about the fifth time that night.

Fighting the maternal instincts that rose up in her and demanded she stay with him, Sarah said goodnight again to both babes and left the nursery, closing the door behind her. She would have liked to keep their door and Jareth's open during the night, but if any goblins found their way through Jareth's barriers in the middle of the night and got into the nursery… she gave the nursery door a small push with her hand, making sure it was secure before going into her own room as Jareth had told her to do.

She was surprised when she entered and saw that there was a simple but pretty white nightgown laying on the bed, smooth as satin and lined with simple white lace. She put it on, pleased that it felt comfortable but nervous about the fact that it was almost sheer, giving away the outline of the shape of her body in the light.

She brushed out her hair for bed and opened up the door to Jareth's bedroom.

X

Jareth dropped his shirt to the ground and turned around when he heard the door between his room and Sarah's open. The second he saw her in the white nightgown he had picked out for her he felt his heart pump furiously in his chest. She was breathtaking in white, looking so innocent and sweet and pure. It was like something a virgin would wear to her wedding bed. While they had shared a wedding bed for some time now, the idea wasn't too far off for what Jareth had planned for the night. After all, there was a place on Sarah's body that was still relatively virgin to him.

Jareth went over to her, taking her hand in his to pull her up against him, throwing her arm back over his own shoulder and dipping down to kiss her pink lips, so soft against his own as his body molded against hers. His breathing sped up at the feel of her warm skin through the slip of her nightgown and he couldn't help but reach down to run his hand over the cheek of her rump, feeling the warmth of the skin there as well. He was practically at full attention already with just the knowledge that she would feel far hotter stretched around him. "I love this on you," he confessed, trailing his fingers over the smooth fabric of the slip. He couldn't wait to see it bunch up around her hips.

Jareth went to kiss her once more, surprised when she pushed back against his shoulders and turned her head away from him. "Jareth wait," she gasped, unable to step back from him when he tightened his hold on her hips. "We need to talk."

Although what he wanted very much right now had nothing to do with words being spoken, she sounded very serious. He pulled back and waited for her to meet his eyes, not allowing her to leave his embrace but giving her his attention. "What is it, precious? Is it about the boys?"

"No," she shook her head, her eyes trailing from his down his neck to his chest, like she was worried he would become mad at her very soon. That only put Jareth even more on edge.

"What is it then?"

"It's… it's about Mavid-"

Jareth let out a frustrated growl and released her, stepping away from her lest he be tempted to shake her. "I thought you two were being civil, do not tell me you two are at it again. Sarah, you are my queen and he is my attendant. We all have to try to get along with each other. What is the situation now?"

"He made a move on me!" she hissed at him, her cheeks stained red with her anger at his assumption.

That must be one of her Aboveground terms Jareth was unfamiliar with. "Made a move? Are you saying he attacked you?" His eyes roamed over her again, this time in concern, but there was nothing visibly wrong with her.

"What? No! He… well he… informed me that if I ever wanted… relations…"

She couldn't seem to finish her sentence, stammering about as her face grew beet red, but she didn't need to finish for Jareth to be able to guess the rest. While it wasn't unheard of, he was still rather surprised by this. "He what? Sarah what exactly happened? When?"

"When he brought me my mail earlier," she shrugged, "We were talking a little and out of nowhere he told me that if you ever allowed me to 'roam from your bed' he wouldn't turn me away from his. It was really weird!" she shook in front of him as though she had just gotten a shudder.

Jareth actually had to hold back a laugh at the distressed look on her face. Jareth was used to attendants and servants of others offering themselves up to him. It was common practice and the closest thing the servants had to free choice of sexual partners of higher standing. This was the first time it had happened to Sarah, and no doubt it wouldn't be the last. Her innocent response to it was somewhat endearing, actually. All the same he found himself having to ask, "Do you _wish_ to sleep in another's bed?"

She shook her head vigorously. "I might be thankful Mavid saved me from Lilith, but I'm not about to be _that_ thankful!"

"I'm not asking about Mavid," Jareth explained, "I am asking if you had any interest in sharing another's bed."

She was less adamant this time, her cheeks still clinging to their red color as she shook her head. "No."

Jareth wanted to ask the reason, but figured she likely wouldn't tell him the real reason and since her answer was preferred he allowed it to drop. He reached out and ran his fingertips over her cheek and jaw before stepping closer to her once more, placing a gentle kiss against her jaw. "Truthfully I am glad to hear that. I suppose as long as we are discussing this it would be best to make this all clear and understood right now." She was tense, but didn't fight when he wrapped his arms around her once more. Placing another kiss against her jaw. "While every marriage has different rules when it comes to these things, I will let you know that I will not demand complete monogamy from you forever. One day I will give you permission to explore if you should feel the need to, and if you do then I shall do the same." He rested his cheek against her temple, mainly so he wouldn't have to see whatever reaction she was having to what he said. He could just imagine the shock and judgment that would be showing in her eyes.

"Just know that before I will ever allow that, there will be certain guidelines that we both will follow. First off being that no relations will take place with any others until after you have become fully willing to share my bed with me and not until after you have delivered a child to me. I won't waste my seed on illegitimate issue and I refuse to ever have to wait for my own child if you should accidentally carry another male's. Does that sound fair?"

He pulled back to gage her reaction—her eyes were wide and she looked as stunned, as if he had just hit her between the eyes with a rock. She nodded her head slowly, obviously not sure what else to do. _As long as she was paying attention_ , Jareth thought to himself with a sigh before he continued. "You will never place anyone else before me, and I shall never do so to you. If I want you then you will keep in my bed no matter who else may want you."

"Anything else?" she asked, clearly uncomfortable with this discussion.

There was plenty else in fact, they could further discuss situations when they came upon them, which wouldn't be for a long time even if he should get her with child tomorrow. For the time being, however, he wanted to leave her with the important things. "Never in our marriage bed, never to get back at each other out of anger, and never lie about it. Most importantly, is that you must never develop feelings beyond lust for any lover you take on. Do you understand me Sarah?"

She nodded her head again, wanting the conversation over. Jareth ran his hand though her hair as a reward for listening.

"Were Mavid's advances the only exciting thing that happened to you today?" he teased her, still finding her reaction to the whole thing to be sweet.

While the look she gave him wasn't murderous, she was clearly not as amused by Mavid's approach as he was. "I just thought you should know about it. And I wasn't going to bother mentioning this before, but now… Jareth, Mavid touched me once before too."

Jareth's brows shot up at that surprising news. "He touched you? Where?" he demanded, his voice coming out cold and controlled despite his confusion and astonishment. Mavid offering himself to a female of higher ranking wasn't in anyway unheard of for attendants and servants to do, but Jareth was surprised he had done so with Sarah. Last he had known Mavid didn't care too much for her. Touching her, however, was something he had never been given permission to do. It wasn't allowed and Mavid knew that!

"In- in the Devine Castle," she said, taking a step back from his arms at the snap in his voice. "When we met with the Council."

He hadn't meant that kind of 'where' but at the news of it having happened so long ago his brows shot up once more. She had kept this from him for so long? This whole time hiding this secret from him?! "Where did he touch _you_ Sarah?" His mind spun with endless ideas till at last Sarah answered him.

"He just touched my back. He had unlaced my corset so I could change and it didn't seem so wrong, but he just touched the skin at the middle of my back for a moment. I didn't tell you because I didn't think it would matter to you."

Jareth's anger dwindled a little bit now that he knew it hadn't been nearly as intimate as his mind had been throwing out at him, but it was far from alright. "It _does_ matter to me Sarah. You shouldn't have allowed him to touch you. You should have told me sooner, rather than harboring that information from me all this time like some private secret." The more he reflected on it the more it angered him, actually. Not telling him about it was just about the same as lying to him. She wasn't allowed to keep anything from him and she knew that, but she had done so anyway.

The anger had filled Sarah's eyes once more. "I wasn't 'harboring private secrets'! I didn't tell you because I figured you would just get mad at me for it… which you're doing right now."

"If you don't tell me things out of fear of punishment it is because you know that you've done something wrong. Why should you fear me when you are guiltless?"

Her cheeks grew red and she glared down at the floor between them. She seemed unable to find an answer she was willing to voice.

"Has he done anything else to you other than touch your back?" Attendants offering themselves was common and harmless and Jareth was only surprised about that because he had been under the impression that Mavid had lacked any sexual interest in his human wife. Touching her without permission however, regardless of where it was he touched… that was bold. Jareth wanted to know if there was anything else his wife was hiding from him.

Sarah stepped away from him at the dark look on his face, knowing that she was already in trouble. "N-no."

That was much less than convincing. "You are lying to me, Sarah," he growled out. "Stop now and I will overlook that one."

"There's nothing else!" she insisted.

Jareth brought the back of his hand across her mouth for lying to him again and she let out a cut-off shriek, covering her mouth with her hands as her eyes welled with tears. Her pain wasn't from his slap though, it hadn't been hard enough to really hurt her, but rather the fact that he had done it. He had warned her though, and if she continued to lie he would strike her again. He kept his face as hard as his stance, not bothering to advance when Sarah hurried from his reach. She couldn't go anywhere, and if he needed to he could call her back to him and she would have to comply or face worse than a small slap. "Lie to me again," he dared her, his tone dark even to his own ears.

After a moment she pulled her shaking hand away from her mouth, glaring at him through her tears unjustly. As though she had any right to be mad at him. She was the one sneaking around, lying to him and hiding things from him. Now she was angry with him for making her tell him the truth! "That same night in the Devine Castle, before he touched my back, he threatened me… because he didn't like the way I was acting towards you."

 _To bad that threat hadn't worked_ , Jareth thought snidely. They wouldn't be doing this right now if she treated him with the respect a husband deserved. They would be on the bed, as he had planned, and he would be showing her pleasures she had not yet fully explored. "Has anything else happened? Has he done anything else to you, or you to him?"

This time Sarah was a lot more convincing when she shook her head no. "I swear it," she whispered, her eyes narrowed at the floor.

He would deal with Mavid later, find out his side of things and why he had also kept this from him. Mavid knew that he wasn't allowed to touch Sarah without Jareth's permission and he wasn't allowed to threaten his queen any more than he was allowed to threaten his king. Those issues would need to be dealt with. While he knew any amount of reprimand would be sufficient to remind Mavid of his station, his wife wasn't as quick a study about such things.

Jareth let out a growl of frustration and went over to the dresser he kept, opening up a panel and taking his riding crop out from inside it. Sarah's eyes bugged and she backed up till she hit the wall, knowing what was no doubt coming.

"I promise you that you will learn not to tell me lies Sarah. Keeping things from me is just the same," he informed her, his tone cold. He pointed to the spot in front of him on the ground with the crop. "On your hands and knees here."

Tears slid down her cheeks in her fear of the pain that was to come. "N-no," she whimpered.

Certainly _not_ a quick study. Jareth reined in his building anger at her defiance, but it was hanging by a worn thread. "I'll not tell you twice."

"But I _told_ you! If I hadn't than you might not have ever known. I didn't hide anything!" she yelled back at him, more anger than sadness in her voice then.

"I would have found out regardless because nothing can be hidden forever, certainly not by _you_ anyway," Jareth drawled, throwing in that extra jab to sting her. "You should have told me right after these incidents happened if you wished to avoid punishment. I suggest you carry that lesson with you in the future and remember to pay me my due respect."

"I have no reason to respect you," she hissed under her breath, like she hadn't really wanted him to hear her.

He had though, unfortunately for her. Jareth's temper rose on him then and he threw the crop on the ground where he had instructed Sarah to kneel not five minutes ago, moving swiftly in long strides across the room to her. She let out another frightened yell despite her bravado when he grabbed hold of both her wrists in his hands, squeezing tightly on her bones. "Be silent before you wake my child!" he hissed at her.

She didn't scream again, but she did try to pull away from him, to no avail, as he hoisted her over his shoulder and locked his arm behind her legs so she didn't fall. Ignoring their indecent state of dress, his dark leggings and boots being the only cover he had and Sarah's gown being practically see-through, he transported them both out of his bedroom to the very outskirts of his labyrinth.

X

Sarah tried to fight against the queasy feeling in her head and in her stomach from Jareth moving them through space. It always made her feel horrible when he did that and he knew it. It started to become overpowered by her fear, however, when she saw through the darkness of the night that they were just outside the walls of the Labyrinth.

Jareth dropped her onto her backside on the ground without care and she let out a cry when pain shot through her whole body from the impact of the cold, hard ground. It was freezing out here, the cold cutting through her all-too-thin nightgown and her teeth started to chatter almost immediately.

The skin of Jareth's bare torso looked practically white in the moonlight, the shadows that played over him a stark contrast. He had to be just as cold as she was, but he showed no signs of feeling it whatsoever as he towered over her, his glare even more icy than the wind that swept wildly at Sarah's hair. Her courage had left her in the face of Jareth's unpredictability, leaving her a shivering frightened little thing before him and she despised herself for it. She was going to open her mouth to ask why he had brought them out here into the cold, beyond the walls of the Labyrinth, but he cut her off before she could.

"I ask you for so little," he informed her coldly. "Just love me, fear me, do as I say… and you refuse every time. No one has ever received so much of my generosity, so much of my patience, so much of my understanding, and yet you cast it all aside as though it were nothing!"

He sounded genuinely hurt for a moment, clearing his throat before he went on. Sarah wrapped her arms tightly around herself, wanting desperately to be out of the cold. She didn't bother getting up from the ground, finding it easier to huddle where she was. Her attention was fixed on Jareth, waiting to know what they were doing out here. Surely there was a reason he was putting them both through this.

"You say you have no reason to respect me… I _beg_ to differ," he snarled at her, putting a lot of emphasis on 'beg'. "You belong to me. You owe me for everything you have and everything you are. You owe me for your very life. All the clothes you wear, the food you eat, the warm bed you sleep in at night, they all belong to me. I give them all to you because you are my wife and it is my duty to see you want for nothing. All I ask is for the same in return, for you to fulfill your role as my wife and queen just as I fulfill mine as your husband and king. Your role as my wife demands that you respect, honor, and obey me always. You seem to think that these are choices for you to follow. That if you don't wish to obey me you needn't. What would you do if I didn't wish to feed you any longer?" he asked cruelly, glaring down at her like he was contemplating kicking her.

Sarah didn't know what she could say to calm him down. He was beyond livid, that cold calmness that she had learned to fear the most almost caused the cold of the night to pale in comparison, almost. Unlike Jareth she hadn't the anger necessary to keep her warm, another shiver racking her body as she huddled more into herself. She hadn't realized what she had said back in their room would anger him this much. She shivered pitifully as another blast of wind blew past her. "Jareth… I-"

"What if I decided I no longer wished to shelter you, if I reneged on that marital duty what would you do then? Tell me Sarah, where will you go?" He swept his hand out across the sprawling lands behind her, all looking barren of any inhabitants.

 _I don't know!_ She thought with bitter anger. Why was he doing this? Her fear was rising and more tears rolled down her cheeks as she stared up at him. What did he expect her to say? She just wanted to get out of the cold. There was no where she could go and if there was she would likely have no clue how to get there. His point was made. Why wasn't he taking them back to the castle?

"Answer me Sarah," he demanded. "Where will you go?"

"I-I don't know," she was forced to admit, choking down what sobs she could before they could spill out of her. She was so cold! Her fingers and toes were starting to hurt from the cold and she was sure her face was flushed.

"Such a pity," he drawled, stepping back from her. "Your refusal to perform your duties to me at all times will no longer be tolerated by me Sarah. There is no place in a household for a disrespectful wife and there is no place in a kingdom for a disobedient subject. I am left with no choice but to cast you out of both."

Sarah's head snapped up at that. He couldn't be serious! His entire being was cold and unmoving towards pity or leniency towards her. The cold wind of the night sliced through them both without remorse but he didn't so much as flinch, his eyes narrowed on her like she were the greatest disappointment he had ever laid eyes on.

Sarah's fear rose to a new level and for a moment she forgot the cold on the outside compared to the cold she felt inside. She jumped to her feet and rushed over to Jareth, who stepped back from her, his hands grasping her shoulders to hold her at bay. "What are you saying?!" she demanded, her fear escaping through her tear ducts. "What do you mean you cast me out?!"

"I have already told you Sarah, if you failed to listen than that is but one more failure on your part. You cannot act like my wife or my queen should, so I have no use for you."

That was… no! He couldn't do this!

He made to turn away from her, back to the castle, but she clung to his arms like life-lines. "You can't be serious!" she wailed, "What about Toby, and Mavias? You can't just cast me out! They need me!"

The look he gave her would have frightened a lesser person into their grave. "For what? Anything you can do for them a nurse could as well. Your body didn't deliver either of them unto me, so you have no milk or nourishment to give them, and no real maternal bond to share with them. You are replaceable."

Sarah felt her heart just about shatter at his unbearably cruel words. How could he say such things? He had warned her once that she never wanted him to hate her; was this what happened when he did? Was he really willing to rip Toby and Mavias away from her, to throw her out on such a cold night that would surely kill her?!

She was willing to do anything he said if he just took her home with him right now. She clung to him and begged him to do so through her tears. He refused to meet her eyes, his skin suddenly gone from beneath her hands and his eyes suddenly vanishing from her sight as he transported himself away, leaving her alone outside the gates of the labyrinth in the cold.

X

Jareth's body was shaking and he didn't know if it was the cold that made it do so or his own rage as he glared for quite some time down at the riding crop that he had thrown on the floor. It could have been such a brief and easy punishment.

The warmth of the room kissed over his cold skin, only showing him just how cold he really was and he trembled against it. Sarah was feeling no such relief, left out for the cold to claim. Jareth's head was still spinning from the chaotic turn the night had taken. He had planned a heated tussle with his wife in his bed… to go from that to where they were at now…

Jareth let out a growl of frustration, knowing he couldn't leave her out there and a very small part of him wishing he could. With his temper still running hot, he turned and transported himself back out into the cold to collect his wife. Sarah was right where he had left her, huddled on the ground into the smallest and tightest ball she was able to make herself into. Her skin was turning shockingly pale and she didn't look up at him when he reappeared. He wondered if she even knew he was there. He forced down his instincts to run to her and take her back inside, out of the unforgiving coldness of the night. They had business to see to, however. He nudged the side of her arm with his boot, claiming her attention. She uncurled her head from the rest of her, looking up to see him at last. She looked like she had been crying, but there were no tears on her cheeks. _Probably too cold for such things anyway_ , Jareth sneered inside his head. "Do you wish to start behaving properly? To treat me as you should, to stop being so rebellious towards your duties? Whatever your answer is, you had better be sure that you mean it this time," he warned her coldly.

Her glassy green eyes closed and Jareth wondered if she was going to cry some more. She shook her head slowly to herself, her shoulders slumping in utter defeat. "Yes," came her simple answer, though her voice was strained.

"You've promised this before. Why should I believe you now?"

She looked up at him again in surprise, clearly not thinking that he was going to question her on it. He was tired of playing these games with her though; he refused to do so again. He would sooner leave her out here.

She wasn't shivering anymore, but she was still clutching to herself in the cold, her lips pale. After a long while she let out a slow sigh and shrugged her shoulders pathetically. "I don't know what I can do to make you believe me. I just want to see Toby. I want to see Mavias. I want to be in your warm bed with you wrapped around me. I want to not cry anymore." She was being genuine, the freezing cold stripping down her inhibitions as though it were liquor.

"You know you can have all that and more if you just started respecting me," Jareth reminded her, still refusing to let her off easy. "You bring your miseries on yourself. I want you to tell me why."

She squeezed her eyes closed again and a sound like a sob escaped her. "Jareth please… I'm so cold. I can't feel my fingers!" she whined pitifully.

"Than you had better answer my questions quickly and honestly or I will leave you again and I will not return." he told her, ignoring the cold that was clawing at his own bare skin. He cursed himself for having not grabbed a cloak while he was in his room. "Tell me why you act against me and say the hurtful things you do when you know that they'll just end in your own pain as well. I want to know why we keep going around in this circle you spin us in Sarah."

"I'm not spinning us in any circle!" she growled out, her anger flaring in response to the discomfort of the cold.

"You _are_ Sarah and you know it," he snapped back, towering over her lest she forget who was dominant already. "Every time we find a little bit of peace between us you manage to tear it apart by doing or saying something that you _know_ you shouldn't. Why?!" he practically roared at her, his rage warming him once more in the face of the cold darkness.

"I d-don't-t kno-o-ow!" she cried back at him. Her lips now a pale blue from the cold. "P-p-lease… I'll do w-what you want!"

That was the worst answer he had ever heard. She put them through this over and over for nothing then?! _I should leave her out here again_ , Jareth seethed. He hardy understood himself when he reached out and grabbed her arm, pulling her out of her huddle despite her resistance and slow movements caused by the cold. "You're hardly worth this," he growled at her, pulling her up against his skin and ignoring how she felt like ice against him. He took them both immediately back to the castle.

X

 _Smack_.

A scream broke from her lips and white hot pain shot up her spine once more. Sweat covered her forehead and prickled her back as she breathed deep and writhed in agony on the floor, having dropped down onto her stomach. The coldness of the night long forgotten by her body that was now so hot she practically felt like she was on fire. She wanted to beg for it to stop, but when she had done that already Jareth had only swung his arm harder.

Sarah could feel his fist in her hair, pulling her head back as he roughly ordered her back onto her hands and knees. "Continue your count," he growled at her, leaving her with no hopes of mercy.

She struggled back up, biting her lip to refocus the intense pain she felt as she did so. He gave her but a moment to catch her breath so she could speak. "S-seventeen," she gasped, her body tensing as she did so and a second later she heard the faint whistle in the air as Jareth brought his arm down sharply, the crop cutting across her well abused backside and she couldn't help but scream and fall again as pain overtook her vision for a millisecond. She felt the trickle of something down the back of her thigh and knew that he had at last broken skin. That was horrible news for her actually, for she had three more lashes to go.

"Enough of your whining," Jareth snarled at her, "Get back up this instant or this will seem like nothing to you."

She forced herself once more to her hands and knees, her tongue aching to say nineteen instead of eighteen and hoping that he would miss it. The fear that he wouldn't forced her not to try it. "Eighteen," she said quickly, hearing the whistle of the crop cutting through the air once more.

X


	40. Chapter 40

[Below is original author note posted back in 2010.

I left it because it seemed to still be relevant today.]

 _Wow, thank you so much everyone for your reviews and I mean_ _ **everyone**_ _. I would like to just take a moment to agree with the majority of you and say that you are absolutely right; the subject matters I get into in this story are horrible, sick and sad. I of course don't condone any of them. I'm not writing this story to promote any of these themes and I don't believe any of you honestly think that I do. I'm mostly working on and improving my skill at emotion manipulation and character depth within my stories._

 _I'm not trying to twist anyone's opinions on whether abuse is bad or not… it is, let me make that clear. It is also very interesting to write about, and I can only assume from all my feedback that, in some way or another, it is also interesting to read about._

X

Sarah leaned forward so she was sitting on her thighs rather than her rump, which had healed quite a bit over the last few days, but was still in the process of. This particular supper was rather quiet, the only sounds being those that would occasionally come from Mavias cooing from his father's lap across the table and one seat down from her; or Toby stabbing his utensils into his plate for amusement. Toby took up the spot to Jareth's right now that he could sit in a high-chair by himself. She had nothing to say to fill the void. She just wished she could go back to her room early, but that would just be one more thing she would have to ask Jareth's permission for.

Sarah glanced over to where Clora would have normally been sitting, but after… that night… Jareth had quickly made arrangements to send the female back to her own family to stay. Things had been a lot quiet since then and on some levels Sarah couldn't help missing her. She tried to turn her mind to something else before her mind could start reminding her of what had happened several nights ago between her and Jareth.

She didn't have anyone to keep her company during the day but the children now, and without Clora she had needed Jareth's help every morning to get dressed, and every night to get undressed… and she had to make a point about asking him to help her otherwise he wouldn't.

It was just one of a couple things he had changed between them.

Sarah glanced over and noticed that Mavid was making sure not to lean back in his chair, taking care that nothing touched his back. Sarah hadn't seen the new scars, but she did know that Jareth had given Mavid several lashings for keeping the truth from him, same as he had her. While it had hurt like nothing she had ever experienced physically when he had spanked her with his riding crop, she was finding it far easier to take than the mental attacks he was dealing her for the other offense she had caused him that night.

Jareth's manner had returned to being civil towards her after the lashing; civil enough anyway. He had forgiven her and Mavid both of what he referred to as 'lying'. Even though Mavid's back had not fully healed yet, their former relationship seemed to hardly suffer at all. They still were around each other throughout the day, talking business and playing with the boys, even joking with each other now and then.

Sarah couldn't wrap her mind around it. It was all business-as-usual between those two.

Jareth was treating her differently still because of what she had said that night. She hadn't understood it at first, but when she had told him she had no reason to show him respect… that had been what had set him off so strongly, not the 'sneaking around' or whatever he called it.

The lies had been taken out of her flesh, but the respect issue she was still paying for through Jareth's physiological attacks. He had informed her after he had finished whipping her in that cold tone of his that she would learn just how much gratitude and respect she owed him. He had told her that until she learned she would have to ask him for everything she wanted or needed, and thank him whether he gave it to her or not. This way she would supposedly be able to fully grasp just how much she had because of him. He had sent Clora away days ago so that she had no choice but to further rely on him, needing him for dressing and having someone to talk to. He had also would sometimes not allow her to do random little things when she asked for permission, like go to breakfast or put on a shawl for warmth, just to really prove to her just how easily he could take away what he gave to her.

She felt like she could go mad from it any day now. Since he spent little time around her during the day she was usually able to just spend time with the boys and forget all about him, doing as she pleased. But in the mornings and at night when he was around her life became nothing but 'Jareth may I please do this?' and 'Jareth may I please have that?' She felt like any day it would turn into 'Jareth may I please say this?' and 'Jareth may I please _think_ that?'

Last night she had forgotten his new rules for a moment and had climbed into bed to go to sleep, and he had made her get out and had used his hand to deliver a firm slap to her tender buttocks before she had to ask him permission to get back in bed… and say thank you when he agreed.

She avoided him as much as she could, avoided speaking to him, or even looking at him. He might have been trying to teach her respect, but he was just teaching her fear. Since he had given her permission to sit down and eat she had not looked up at him even once. Even though he sat right next to her she had no idea what he was even wearing, and had no desire to look.

She pushed her food around her plate, not really caring for anything to eat before taking yet another drink from her second glass of wine.

"Sarah," Jareth drawled, causing a feeling of dread to pool in her stomach now that his attention was on her. She turned her head towards him to show she was listening, but focused her gaze on his shoulder rather than looking directly at him. She noticed for the first time that he was wearing a rustic-red shirt today. "You're not eating," he observed.

She turned back to her plate without a word and dug her fork into some of the meat that had been served, not knowing what it was and not caring as she brought it to her mouth. After she was done chewing she reached for her glass of wine again, but Jareth reached out and covered the top of her goblet with his hand to stop her. "You've had enough of that tonight," he informed her curtly. "I don't want you to risk getting drunk tonight. Mavid and I will be going out."

That surprised her enough that her eyes flecked over to him now. "Out?"

"Loki will be with us as well, and he will be bringing his human wife and their child with him to stay here with you and the babes. They should be arriving very soon. You will be a good hostess to his wife and daughter while they are here, understood?"

She had no other choice but to nod her head, but honestly she felt somewhat excited. She would have another human woman to talk to and Jareth would be gone from the castle? What was not to love? "Where will you be going?" she didn't really care about the _where_ , as much as she did the _how far_. The further the better.

"It's been a very long time since I've gone out hunting, something I enjoy greatly," he shrugged, his tone lightening considerably while on this topic.

Sarah recalled the hunting lodge where Mavid's mating had taken place and all the trophy animals displayed there. She didn't doubt hunting was a favorite past time. "How long will you be out?"

"We will be out all night, but we will remain in the kingdom. So I will still be able to keep an eye on you," he warned her, taking a final bite of his meal before dabbing his napkin to his mouth and tossing it down on the table.

X

Sarah was delighted to be spending time with Cleo. She hadn't been around another human female since arriving in this world. While Cleo still had been born and raised here and so couldn't relate much to her in any fish-out-of-water sense, it was still good to know that Cleo wasn't able to use magic on her and wouldn't start speaking in weird fae languages she didn't understand. Thus far Cleo had barely said more past her initial 'pleasure to meet you' before the males had left them to the children.

Cleo's daughter Dalphane was already walking, but she was still shaky at it and would plop down a lot in the cutest way. Toby was literally running circles around her in a way that made Sarah suspect he just might be bragging about his ability to do so, but he didn't seem to notice that the little girl wasn't even watching him. She was more intent on slowly making her way over to his toy chest. Mavias was laying on his stomach on the floor between Sarah and Cleo, rolling a small stuffed ball across the rug within his reach. Any time he pushed it too far either Sarah or Cleo would push it back to him.

"You have a beautiful daughter," Sarah complimented Loki's wife politely, looking over at the plump little rosy cheeks and soft black hair starting to reach her neck. She was indeed an adorable baby.

"Thank you," Cleo sighed, retrieving the ball once again for Mavias before her eyes flicked back to the children. After a moments pause she glanced back to Sarah. "Your son will grow to be handsome too."

Sarah held back her initial impulse to correct Cleo about Toby technically being her son. There really wasn't any need for her to do so. Especially at this point. She didn't care what Jareth had said about it. Although it had hurt her greatly to hear it, she knew he was dead wrong and that the boys did need her and love her. He couldn't tell her that she had no bond with them just because she didn't share blood with them. They weren't children of her body but they were children of her heart and that was what really mattered.

"Thank you," Sarah smiled.

For a while they went back to their silent companionship, watching the kids as they tried to think of something else to talk about with each other. It was Cleo who eventually broke the silence, first to warn Toby not to climb on top of his toy chest, and then directly to Sarah. "Loki told me that you're human too, but he told me that you're from the Aboveground. My grandfather was from there. I've never been. What's that like? Loki has always told me that the humans up there are cruel and conniving beasts that are bent on destroying themselves, but you don't seem anything like that."

She had definitely grown up around the fae and Sarah tried not to feel offended or embarrassed at the assumption of the human race held in the Underground. "Ah, thank you…" she licked her lips as she tried to think of a simple answer, returning the ball back to Mavias. "I guess I don't know about all that stuff. Sure people have their problems, but I didn't know anybody personally that was 'bent on destroying' anyone. The humans I grew up around were all for the most part nice and totally harmless. We just work, go out, go to school, do whatever gets us through the day and just co-exist together."

Cleo looked like she was unsure whether she should believe her or not, but said nothing more on the topic.

Mavias got a bit of force behind the ball and laughed when Sarah had to get up and crawl a few steps to get it, something nearly impossible to do in the long skirts of her dresses. She managed and was thankful it hadn't gone any further than that. She grinned down at Mavias as he continued his little baby laugh. "Look at how strong you're getting," she cooed at him in encouragement.

"The ladies are sure to fall all over themselves," Cleo chuckled warmly, her hand touching the rug next to Mavias, but careful not to actually touch him.

"Where is Loki's other wife?" Sarah asked, curious as to why she almost never saw the other female at all.

Cleo rolled her eyes, but not at Sarah. "Her 'royal highness' often over-see's the manor when Loki leaves it. Otherwise it will surely fall apart," she drawled with a sarcasm Sarah was surprised to hear coming from her. Obviously there was some tenderness on that topic.

"Do you two not get along?"

"We get along fine… when Loki's there. She ignores me the rest of the time, or acts like she's my second husband rather than my wife-superior. She doesn't get that those are two different things." Cleo let out a sigh and tapped her fingers against the floor in thought. "She's one of those fae that find it beneath themselves to interact with any other races. She would have never come here for this because it would mean spending an evening in the company of human women."

"She sounds so wonderful," Sarah commented, the sarcasm dripping off every word.

"Well, she's not mean or cruel to me or anything… thank the Gods. She just sees me as more of a servant or something and since giving a successful childbirth she still treats me no differently."

"How is she towards Dalphane?"

"Loves her of course, after all she is half Loki's. Assuming she finds her magic one day she will be accepted into the fae as one of them. They don't populate enough to be picky about half-breeds." she glanced over to check on the kids, smiling warmly when she saw Toby showing one of his toys to Dalphane.

Sarah's warm smile turned into an eye roll when she looked over and saw what was really going on. Dalphane had his unicorn clutched in her arms and he was trying to entice her with the new toy so he could get it back. He was more and more his father's son. To already be practicing his trickery and manipulation. A small smirk forced it's way to her face for how cute he was despite that.

"You are so lucky to have two boys around," Cleo commented. "I love my little girl, but I had been sort of hoping for a boy to be honest."

"You could have another," Sarah shrugged, noticing when Cleo's face instantly paled and her eyes grew in alarm. "What's wrong?" Sarah asked, sitting up straighter at the girl's reaction.

"Gods forgive me, but I hope and pray I never have another child." Cleo gasped, looking on the verge of panic as her eyes grew wet and her lower lip started to tremble. "You mustn't say anything to Loki… or anyone else… please!" she pleaded like her life depended on it.

Jeez, was pregnancy really that horrible?!

Sarah opened her mouth to say something but Cleo cut her off, "Giving birth to a fae's offspring… the birth I could handle again I think, even though it hurt worse than anything I have ever felt before. The pregnancy though… oh it's horrible!"

"What? Why?" Sarah demanded, freaked out by Cleo's reaction.

"Sarah, when a fae female gets pregnant she is only pregnant for a few months and it's so hard on her body that she does nothing but lay in bed day in and day out for that whole time because she is in too much pain to move about and they are so delicate about their pregnancies that it could hurt the baby anyway. A human woman pregnant with a fae's child is always handled the same way! I kept it hidden for a few months, something Loki was furious about when he found out. Once he did find out I was pregnant though he took me to my room and put me to bed and told me to stay there till I gave birth! When I would get up and wonder around to get something to eat or because I was so terribly bored and restless he started locking my door. He would only let me out for one hour a day to use the restroom, bathe and do as much walking as I could before he would lock me away again! I spent no less than six months in that damn bed that I eventually gave birth in."

Tears streaked down Sarah's cheeks in horrified sympathy, mirroring the tears sliding down Cleo's. "You cant imagine it Sarah, being immobile for that long when there is nothing wrong with you. Not until you go through it. I constantly begged Loki to let me out. I constantly begged for death to come and either take me or my unborn child because either would put a stop to the death I was living in. You don't know what I had to do to convince Loki to let me out of the manor for that one hour when I came to your Introduction at the fairy ring. I had cried and begged all day and said all kinds of things that I didn't mean. I threatened to find a way to hurt myself if he didn't let me go with him. I just wanted to leave the manor so much. And then when I was there I had to stay quiet and still the whole time because Loki warned me if I got too worked up he would take me right back to the manor so as to not risk the pregnancy. Did you notice at the time the way your husband glared at Loki for having me there? They're all the same about these things."

Sarah felt like she was going to be sick to her stomach. She had already feared a pregnancy, but now… knowing that…

Sarah suddenly froze on a thought. Carrie had been pregnant twice before she had escaped Jareth. Twice she had caused herself to miscarry. Sarah wondered if it was because Carrie had feared what Cleo had just spoke of. She had crushed the first one with her corset, and had thrown herself down a flight of stairs to end the second one according to Aboris and Jareth. Maybe she had kept Toby because she hadn't feared Jareth or the fae customs any longer.

Sarah had already been fearful of getting pregnant, but now… and especially with Jareth lording his power over her like he was now, she had no illusions whatsoever that he would be on board with the whole restraining to protect a pregnancy thing.

Sarah tried not to feel too ill to her stomach by these thoughts.

She should have done it long ago, but with this new information she felt more determined than ever before to not risk a pregnancy. The sooner the better now. She had only one resource on hand and with Jareth out for the night it was the perfect opportunity to utilize it.

"Lets put the children to bed," she suggested, her voice a little shaky yet. "I'm suddenly not feeling all that well and it's getting late. I'll show you to your room afterward."

Cleo wiped her tears away and nodded her head, looking rather tired herself. "Very well then."

As Sarah scooped up Mavias and informed Toby and Dalphane that it was bedtime -ignoring their whines- her mind was set on only one thing; going to Aboris as soon as Cleo was in bed and begging him to give her any kind of contraceptives he had to offer her. It may be likely that they didn't even have such things down here with everyone being so baby crazy, but damn if she wasn't going to at least try to get some.

X

She had been happy to hear he was leaving the castle for the night. Jareth had seen it in her eyes. Normally that might have angered him. But not tonight. The truth was that he was excited for it too. He felt he needed some time away from her, and a men's hunting trip was just the thing to lift his spirits and make him forget about how deeply she had hurt him with her cruel words on that night.

Speaking of spirits, Jareth lifted the canteen to his lips and sucked down more of the sweet goblin wine they had brought with them, feeling the flush on his cheeks battle the crispness in the air and enjoying the gentle way the world swayed around him as his horse moved through the thick brush. On either side of him Loki and Mavid were rather pink-cheeked too, still laughing about earlier when they had happened upon a group of Fiery's playing some game that involved them taking off their heads and throwing them between two thin trees. While they wouldn't do for hunting, it had been immensely funny when Loki had used his shape-sifting talents to transform himself into a headless horseman and had run after them, screaming that he needed one of theirs! They had run off frightened faster than Jareth had ever seen them move before. The three of them had laughed so hard that Jareth had had tears in his eyes. They were making enough noise now that it was unlikely that anything worth hunting would come across their path, but the hunt was only part of the fun. For hours they had been riding through the cold night in the forest, drinking more than fair amounts of alcohol.

Loki kicked his Pegasus up closer to Jareth's, his grin the very promise for mischief. "So I beenathinking…" he slurred, causing Jareth to laugh so hard he almost fell from his steed. Loki gripped his arm to help keep him up, but it mostly just jerked him the other way and his mare huffed in agitation beneath him. "No no no, hear me out!" Loki laughed. "I've been thing- thinking about what you said about your wife. How you're trying to show her respect and all-

"He's trying to _teach_ her respect," Mavid laughed from Jareth's other side. "He _shows_ her plenty."

"Right right," Loki nodded, "That thing; and I was a thinking maybe you should speak to Lord Casting, or as I so dearly like to refer to him as Lord Cast-Iron." He belted out laughter at his own joke and Jareth and Mavid both laughed at how funny he thought that was. "I hear he puts all his long-term lovers through the same training as he does his Pegasus's. Those are champion ponies thanks to his training! He makes the females sleep with them in the stables, run the same training exercises, and makes them respond to the same commands! It's pretty entertaining to see. He took in a harpy lover once and even taught her to perform the same aerial tricks as the ponies!"

While it was amusing to think of Sarah going through any training that required her wearing a bridal, Jareth just shook his head and laughed when he shoved Loki's shoulder hard enough to push the smaller male from the back of his horse.

Loki got back up with some half-hearted curses spewing out of him, only to slip and fall back down to the ground with a laugh, turning over onto his back to lay down, content to stay down on the grass. Jareth and Mavid dismounted as well, although Jareth tried his best to cover it up when he stumbled. The world spun just a little more as he sat down next to his old friend. "I am unconvinced that that would do any good with Sarah," he laughed.

Loki shrugged, "As much good as what you're doing now."

Mavid stopped laughing and Jareth's eyes narrowed. "Your drink loosens your lips just a bit too much," he warned him, not wanting to be told how to see to his wife by anyone else.

Loki pulled himself up with some difficulty, sitting up next to Jareth as Mavid carried one of the liquor-filled nap-sacks from one of the horses over to them, taking the seat next to Loki with a graceless flop onto the grass. "Don't ya give me that. You may be a king but I am still your friend and I intend very much to take advantage of that fact so youlistenup," he slurred.

Jareth wanted to be indignant with the fae, but he found himself amused instead and even laughed at Loki's openness.

"If I understood what you were saying earlier, and its possible my mind has altered reality so bare with me," Loki grinned, taking another pull from his basilisk-skin flask. "You're making Sarah completely rely on you and now she avoids you?"

"That's the gist," Mavid chimed in, completely ignoring the glare Jareth shot him.

"She's making it very difficult. Such lessons don't come easy for her," Jareth mumbled into his own flask. "Instead of understanding the point I was trying to make she's running from me even more."

"Forgive me for this friend," Loki muttered, "But to quote the modern humans that you have such a fondness for, _Duh_!"

The glare Jareth shot him then was unrivaled by any other, but Loki pressed on, to drunk to pay it any mind.

"Think about it Jareth, you dragged one of those _modern_ human women," he continued, saying the word 'modern' like it was foul. "Down here and you're really telling me you expected her to just fall in line as easily as a woman from Carrie's time did? For fuck's sake you spend more time Aboveground than I do, you know what they're like these days. Everything is 'equality this', and 'freedom that'. Every single one of them humans are taught nowadays that they are special, that they are worth something when they are really just one of billions just like them. There's not a single one of them that believes they have anything less than greatness in them.

"You should have never brought her down here," he continued, ignoring Jareth's glare and Mavid's surprised stare. "A smarter male would have left her where he found her. There is a reason you can barely find humans on the black magic market these days. The modern ones are too difficult to handle anymore. They have forgotten how to accept their places and anymore they either rebel and have to be put down or they kill themselves! My second wife's grandfather was a good servant to my father, but even he eventually took his own life. Cleo is good to me because she was raised here. The males of the Aboveground lost control of themselves long ago, and then they lost control of their females. You know as well as I do that females today think themselves deserving of everything men have; it's worse because human men think they deserve everything now."

Jareth was growing tired of Loki's speech about 'modern man', even though he was likely correct. Loki had campaigned in the past for all ties between the worlds to be severed. Jareth always assumed Loki still bore a grudge for the humans no longer seeing him as the god they once had mistaken him for, and had reduced him to a wanton villain in their comic books. He wanted to get up and walk away, but his head was starting to swim just a little too much for that coordination and he was trapped as Loki went on.

"Let me put it this way, you don't like me telling you all this stuff -don't deny it," Loki laughed, "But if I came into your castle and started ordering you about like a common servant day in and day out I would be willing to bet that no matter how much you adore me currently that you would make attempts on my life. Admit it Jareth, you would kill anyone who dared to do so."

Jareth took another drink and nodded his head, trying not to actually listen to Loki, but failing. The male talked too damn much to be ignored.

"Sarah was raised believing those stupid modern ideals, so in her mind she is practically a man and all men believe they are kings, in charge of themselves and their destinies -the idiots," Loki took another drink, "So, in a way, you're bossing around another king and wondering why she's having none of it."

Jareth's eyes widened till it could have almost been comical as he took in what Loki was saying to him. The stupid bastard… he had a point.

"You should have left her," Loki mumbled again, digging into a pouch hanging from his hip.

Jareth laid back on the cold grass and stared up at the dark forest around them, reflecting on what Loki had just said as much as his hindered mind would allow him to.

Mavid stayed wisely silent on the other side of Loki.

"Whoa," Loki sighed, next to him, causing both Jareth and Mavid to look up to see what the male was referring to. A couple flakes of snow fell around them, just a few, but they were slowly growing in number. It had been a very long time since the labyrinth had been touched by the snow, which normally collected in the bordering mountains and forgot all about the goblin kingdom. The pure white and gentle flakes drifted down around them and they sat and watched for a bit.

"This calls for some celebrating," Loki beamed, dragging himself out of the somber mood he had pulled them all into in the first place as he rolled over a little on his side and moved some of the layers he wore for warmth aside so he could withdraw a small fabric pouch from his pocket. "This- these things are from the Lands of Despair, one of their biggest exports now."

Jareth looked on as Loki opened the pouch and spilled a few little pod like seeds in Mavid's hand, all a deep red in color.

"How many do you take?" Mavid asked.

"The first time I took three. I saw little blue critters everywhere all day! Take six, Mavid!" Loki challenged with a laugh. "I'm only doing one this time, but you should try two."

"How do you take 'em?" Mavid asked, leaving two in his hand and passing the rest back to Jareth, who sectioned out two for himself. He figured they could only help him forget about Sarah for the night.

"Chew them," Loki said with a smile that looked pleasant enough, but both males had grown to mistrust that particular smile most of all.

"How do you actually take them?" Jareth asked.

Loki laughed and stuck his tongue out at them both. "Just pinch them between your fingers. It really gets under your skin from there."

Jareth looked down at the little seeds, crushing them easily in his fist and feeling them pop open with ease.

He opened his hand and curled his lip back at the red stain it had left behind, but then watched in confusion as the red seemed to pool and turn to liquid, resembling blood in his hand and he couldn't help but admire the beauty of it. It was so bright and luminous even in the darkness of the night. With a laugh that sounded shrill to his own ears he threw the blood up in the air and watched as it grew and filled the sky above him, hugging the trees and leaves as it spread and Jareth laughed again when the snow flakes turned red like drops of blood as they floated down to them. He couldn't help but suddenly wish that Sarah was there, torn between wanting to hold her and screw her brains out.

Why shouldn't he be with her? Right now he really wanted to be. His mind was set on it as he pulled himself up from his spot on the grass -with much more difficulty than he would have expected- and ignored Mavid and Loki when they laughed at his efforts, their faces distorting before his eyes and making them appear frightening.

"Damn you!" he laughed back at them, finding it took a lot of focus to control his motor functions enough to finally get himself to his feet.

"Where are you going?" Mavid drawled in a deeply relaxed voice, his eyes focused on something that didn't exist on the ground next to him even though he spoke to Jareth.

"I'm going home," Jareth grinned, "I want to fuck my wife."

Both Mavid and Loki seemed to find this hysterical and Mavid rolled onto his still healing back with no sign of feeling the pain at all as both males guffawed.

"Show that king she's really just a queen!" Loki cheered with a laugh.

X

Sarah tossed the blanket out over the guest bed, hoping it would be enough to keep Cleo warm. "You're kind to go to such trouble for me," Cleo smiled at her from across the bed, straightening out the blanket.

"It's no trouble at all," Sarah objected, waving her hand in the air as if to dismiss the very idea. "I hope the bed is comfy enough."

"As comfy as it can get without Loki in it I suppose," Cleo giggled, coming around to Sarah. "I can help you with your dress if you help me with mine."

Sarah nodded her head and turned around so her back was to Cleo, sweeping her hair forward over her shoulder so Cleo could get at the buttons of the dress and the laces of the corset. "You share a bed with Loki than?" she asked, mainly to make conversation… and appease her curiosity.

"And Amantha, Loki's first wife."

"The three of you?" Sarah asked, trying to keep the shock from her voice. She would kill Jareth if he ever tried to get another woman-

"Of course. Loki loves to cuddle. He is the most affectionate male I've ever known," she sighed, her tone holding nothing but pure fondness and love.

Sarah couldn't wrap her head around it. "You love him then?"

"Oh yes. He loves me too, he was arranged to Amantha and although he might love her too, he _chose_ me because he loves me."

"Despite the pregnancy thing?" Sarah questioned further, hoping she wasn't pushing it.

"While I hated it, I couldn't stop loving him just because he wanted what he believed was best for me and for our child. He grew up surrounded by the fae. Sometimes he can tend to forget how different we are. I forget too sometimes."

The corset went slack from Sarah's torso and she exhaled in relief. The two of them turned and Sarah started in on the laces of Cleo's dress. The sooner this place discovered zippers the better!

"Do you and Jareth cuddle?" Cleo asked, a small giggle in her voice.

Usually whether she wanted to or not. "Most nights."

Sarah completed the laces to both the dress and the corset with a sigh. "Alright, I'll leave you to sleep for the night," she informed the girl, anxious to go to Aboris and see about birth control.

"Thank you," Cleo called out politely as Sarah hurried from the room and closed the door behind her.

Sarah practically ran all the way to Aboris's room, desperately holding up her now opened dress so it didn't fall down and ignoring the goblins she passed as they hooted at her and threw things at each other. She was thankful to see him in; currently he was arguing with the same goblin that she had seen in his office before, the one who liked to make up injuries and ailments to get stuff. Aboris bowed to her as soon as he saw her and she ignored it when the goblin blew a raspberry at her, obviously hoping she would hit him for it or something and looking dejected when she didn't. "To what do I owe this pleasure my lady?" Aboris asked her politely. His eyes flicked up and widened a bit when he saw her state of near-undress, but he didn't comment on it.

"Hey I were in here first wasn't I?!" the goblin shrieked. "Wha' about me broken arm here?" he insisted, waving said arm around like he was intent on actually breaking it.

"It's not broken and I'm not giving you anything! For the last time get out!" Aboris hissed back at him.

"Get out now." Sarah commanded, her tone almost foreign to herself with how cold and authoritative she sounded. She had to have picked it up from Jareth. Aboris's mouth parted slightly in surprise and the foolish goblin jumped down off the cot and left in a huff. She shut the door behind it quickly and turned back to Aboris. "I need your help."

Aboris nodded his head. "Certainly, do you need more pain killers? Perhaps a sleeping brew?"

"Aboris, I am being dead serious when I tell you that no one can find out I was here or what I am about to say to you. Do you understand me?" Sarah demanded, her tone keeping its coldness.

The elf healer seemed reluctant to such an agreement, but nodded his head. "Of- of course my lady. What can I do for you?"

"I need a contraceptive."

Aboris's jaw dropped and he actually took a step back from her. "M-my lady please no. Do not ask me for such a thing again. If the king found out that you merely asked for one…"

"Don't you think I know the risk," Sarah retorted, stepping closer to the elf. "I know if Jareth found out than best case scenario he would beat me to within an inch of my life. I wouldn't come to you asking for them unless I feared the alternative even more than that!"

The color drained from his face. "And what of me, my lady? If he learned that I had supplied you with such a thing do you think he would hesitate to kill me? If he did hesitate it would only be to torture me first! Knowing that can you still ask me for help in this?"

Sarah honestly hadn't even thought about it that far, but she should have. As much as she wanted to deny that would happen, or insist that Jareth would never find out she knew it would be nothing but lies. Jareth always found out eventually. It would be a temporary fix that would end very badly for more than just herself. Her stomach turned in her desperate fear and she slumped to the ground in front of Aboris's feet. The elf kept back, too stunned to move as she knelt before him and cried.

"I don't know what to do than," she confessed between her sobs. "I don't want to get pregnant. I don't want to be locked up for nine months!"

There was a long silence that passed in which Aboris simply stood back from Sarah as she quietly cried on the floor. Finally he seemed to think of some comfort he could offer her and went over to one of his medical jars, bringing it with him over to her. As Sarah tried to collect herself he took a seat beside her on the floor, patting her shoulder awkwardly a time or two in comfort. "My lady I know it will not make you feel better, but I should tell you that I do not possess any contraceptives here in any case. There is exceedingly little demand for them in the labyrinth. You have been very lucky thus far to not conceive of a child. You can only hope that your luck holds if you are this upset by the thought of childbirth."

It was very little comfort to her and she turned her head away from him. This was not the answer she had been hoping for. That he didn't keep any here at all only meant that there was no chance of her getting her hands on some with or without his help.

"This might make you feel a little better. I'm sorry I cant offer you more," he offered, taking the lid off the jar and pulling out a small brown block. He offered it to her and she eyed it in speculation, unfamiliar with what kind of medicine he was offering her now.

"What is it?" she sniffed, wiping at her tears.

Aboris turned red. "Well its… er… chocolate." he admitted sheepishly.

She was on the floor of his office crying because he couldn't give her birth control and the only thing he had to offer her to cheer her up was chocolate.

The laugh that trickled from her lips surprised them both at first, and the shaky chuckle erupted very quickly into laughter so hard and loud that Sarah soon found her sides hurting and she clutched them to relieve the pain Aboris was soon laughing too, but not as hard. It wasn't really all that funny, if at all. But Sarah couldn't help but find it hilarious. Like when the doctors at home would give her a sucker after a shot. _I don't have birth control, but here's chocolate instead_. It was such a horrible trade and they both knew it and couldn't help but laugh at it.

X

Sarah trudged back up to her room, the taste of chocolate on her tongue mixing with the bitter feeling of hopelessness in her gut. She just wanted to sleep. She held her dress on her and bi-passed Jareth's room all together, figuring she would just bathe in the morning. She opened her own door and stiffened immediately when she looked up to see Jareth was in her room already, clad in his black armor and sitting on her little bed with his back against the stone wall next to it. The fireplace that burned in her room gave her just enough light to know it was him, the majority of him cast in shadows. His eyes had been closed and his head tilted back against the wall as he sang something under his breath- off pitch. He opened his eyes now and turned his head toward Sarah, his whole body swaying.

What was he doing here? Sarah cautiously came into her room, closing the door behind her but continuing to hold up her dress. He had obviously been waiting for her, but she wondered just how long. "Jareth?"

"Wherewereyou huh?" Jareth slurred out quickly.

Sarah's eyes widened, but not because of his question. He was drunk. She had never seen him so intoxicated before. His head was still swaying very slightly as he looked her up and down. Before she could bother to answer his lips cracked into a sly grin and a small chuckle spilled from him, making her feel even more uneasy.

"Let go of your dress," he ordered her, his eyes full of amusement and lust.

She continued to hold her dress in her hands, unsure what to make of the situation. "I thought you were going to be gone all night… the hunting trip?"

"I missed you," Jareth admitted with a shrug. Possibly the most open and honest thing he had ever said to her.

"Where are Mavid and Loki?"

"Probably falling asleep in the hunting lodge," Jareth shrugged. Swaying again. "Take that off and come here," he coaxed, though there was the faintest hint of a whine in his voice that only made Sarah more uneasy about this. Drunk or not, he might still punish her if she disobeyed him and with his control slipping from him left and right that was not something she wanted to endure. She released her dress and corset, leaving her in just her yoga pants and underwear. Jareth's eyes raked over her before he laughed uproariously enough that Sarah took a step back from the booming noise. "You're wearing _those_ things!" he pointed out like it was the most amusing thing in the world.

Sarah simply nodded her head and crossed her arms over her chest, which brought a slight pout to his face. "Don't do that. Come 'ere," he beckoned, swaying and snickering again as he ran a hand through his messy locks. "Come here. I wanna touch you."

"I should probably bathe first," Sarah dodged, taking a step further away from him.

"Damn it I said come here!" Jareth suddenly snapped at her, causing her to jump and he pinched the bridge of his nose between his fingers like he had just given himself a headache. "I'm sorry," he moaned, continuing to sway on her bed. "Just… just come here."

Shocked, wary, and unsure what else to do, Sarah slowly padded across the floor as though she were approaching a man-eating tiger. Although it was probably healthy to view an out of control goblin king the same way.

Once she was close enough Jareth reached out and took hold of her wrist a bit more firmly than he probably meant to do, but slowly pulled her closer like he was trying to be gentle. "Just lay down with me," he coaxed, sounding very tired. "I'm sorry I scared you. Just lay down. Lay down."

He had already apologized to her more times tonight than he probably had the whole time she had been with him. Sarah had no other option but to lay down next to him on her bed. The black armor he wore that had protected him from the cold was still on and Sarah didn't know how it could look as hard as a beetle's shell but move so flexibly with Jareth as he settled in next to her, tucking her up against him and the cool-to-the-touch armor he wore. "Take these off," he insisted, his fingers running over her yoga pants.

"You're still wearing your armor," she pointed out.

Jareth let out a sigh and with a sweep of his hand the armor vanished from sight, leaving him in nothing against her suddenly. "Now take 'em off."

It didn't escape Sarah's attention that he didn't seem in any ready state for sex, and she wondered if he would even be able to get there with how drunk he was. She complied by removing both the pants and underwear, laying back once she was as bare as Jareth was. His eyes were very dilated as they swept over her body again and again, finally settling on her breasts and he took one of them in his hand, rolling it and squeezing it in a manner that was not mindful of pleasure, but exploration, his eyes focused on it as his body swayed.

"Did you miss me?" he questioned, laying his head down against his arm as he continued to grope her.

 _No_. "Yes."

Drunk, he didn't seem able to pick out the lie, or he didn't care. Jareth simply smirked and his hand trailed over her stomach, petting her from her chest to there over and over like he just liked the feel of her skin. "I missed you too," he sighed. "My head is spinning."

She looked over at him but said nothing, unsure what to say. He was looking on the verge of passing out. Sarah was just about to allow herself to relax when he tugged at her side, trying to roll her to him. "Come here," he sighed, his eyes fluttering closed. "Kiss me."

Sarah did so, hoping not to work him up so that he would pass out sooner. The kiss was shallow and there was no frenzy behind it. It was broken off when Jareth turned his head away and yawned. He held onto Sarah so that she was forced to settle with her body half draped over his. She rested her head against his chest, surprised when he kept talking rather than passing out right away.

"You are so beautiful, Sarah," he sighed. "You are, you are so sexy and beautiful and I want you to start loving me. I'm sorry I don't treat you like a king. You are a good king," he said, making no sense to her, but she didn't dare interrupt. "I wish you didn't hate me so much," he sighed again. Sarah could feel his lips on the back of her head, kissing her before he let out another long sigh that trailed into a groan and he reached up to clutch at his forehead. "I should have never said what I did about you being replaceable. It was a horrible lie… I'm sorry. I'm sorry I said that. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry Sarah," he rambled off, his voice shaking as he clutched her closer against him, his lips ghosting over the top of her head and although she could practically bet that these were just drunken ramblings, she felt tears come to her own eyes and fall down onto his chest, her arms wrapping a little tighter around him too since he was the one and only comfort available to her as he continued to say he was sorry to her. "I'm sorry for _everything_ ," he whispered to her before he finally passed out for the night.

X


	41. Chapter 41

Beta for this chapter is ASunInWinter.

There are only 46 chapters total.

X

"Toby stop that!" Sarah scolded, having noticed that Toby was starting to jump on one of the couches again, after having already being told not to twice before. "I told you if you can't sit down properly you can stay off them completely."

Toby turned his skinny body towards her fully and met her stare from where he stood on the couch across the library, his green eyes betraying how the wheels in his head were turning as he contemplated not listening to her. It was a silent standoff, something Toby had only tried with her once or twice before and had eventually caved once he realized she was serious. Sarah kept her stare firm on him and although she didn't let it show she felt relief when he climbed down with a pout.

"I bored!" he whined at her, trudging his way up to her chair and resting his hands and chin on the arm.

Sarah turned to Dr. Dee, who was sitting next to her with a patient smile on his face as she gave him an apologetic glance. She had been looking forward to this visit for the past week, but neither Toby nor Mavias were making it easy. They were both fussy today and she was currently bouncing the baby on her knee to keep him calm so he didn't start crying again.

"I want to see my daddy," Toby whined again.

"You know he's working. You'll see him later tonight at supper," she sighed, trying to think of something in the library that could keep him entertained for a bit longer so she could visit with Dee. "Why don't you see if you can find a picture book?" she suggested.

Toby seemed less than wowed by that idea, but none the less went over to one of the close-by shelves and started pulling out random books and tossing them onto the ground when they contained nothing but words and symbols of no interest to him. Although she hated seeing books so mistreated, Sarah ignored it for the chance to continue her conversation, turning back to Dee. "Sorry, where were we?"

"You were telling me that your husband has stopped making you beg him for everything," Dee reminded her, his face thoughtful, but otherwise unreadable as he listened politely.

Sarah couldn't quite describe how, but she just knew that whatever she said to John Dee would go no further than him and after a while she had found him a wonderful companion to confide in. He was patient and content to listen to her troubles and although he spoke only when he felt it necessary, he gave rather sound advice. He was a man that was practical and rational to a fault, nothing could cause him to fly off the handle and always offering up perspectives that only he could. He had the unique perspective of being from the Aboveground, a man, accustomed to the ways of the fae, and from a time in the Aboveground when a lot of the things she would consider horrible were merely deemed as unpleasant at best.

She had talked with him for much of the day already about nothing and everything, but she had also found herself confiding in him about the incident that had happened between her and Jareth and about him apologizing to her nearly a month ago. After Jareth had passed out she had climbed out of her bed carefully and had slipped into his room, spending the night in there instead because she hadn't wanted to stay with him. She had felt so confused by the whole thing. Jareth had slurred countless apologies at her, apologies that felt like they rocked her very soul and she didn't know how to take them. A part of her felt almost grateful that he had actually felt remorseful enough to apologize to her at all. He had said he was sorry for _everything_. How much had he really been sorry for in saying that? Was he talking about the fights? The begging he had forced her to go through? Did he really mean _everything_? Had he even really meant it at all?

But there was the other part of her, the part that felt strangled with anger at him thinking that he could apologize to her at all, that what he did was something he could ever hope to really apologize for. Even if he took her back to the Aboveground and reunited her with her father and promised to never come near her again, would that mean she could forgive him of everything he had done to her? Absolutely not.

A part of her wanted to forgive though, to let go of the anger she held in her heart at her situation, at the turns of her life. She felt like she couldn't, however, and she had eventually cried herself to sleep for lack of knowing what else to do.

The next day Loki and Mavid had come back to the castle groggy and hungover. Loki hadn't cared that Jareth slept through him collecting his wife and child and returning home, and Mavid had only asked if Jareth had woken up yet. When she had informed him that he hadn't he had quickly retreated to his own room to continue his sleep as well. Jareth hadn't woken up until it was almost supper time.

When he had finally woken up he said nothing to her about the night before or anything he said or did. He didn't ask how he had ended up in her bed, or any other questions other than if anything notable had happened while he had slept. She told him that Cleo had been nice, and that Toby had enjoyed having another kid to play with. Afterward she had asked him if she could go to the restroom, remembering his rules.

He had shocked her when he had waved his hand in front of him as though brushing away her words. "Do not— you do not need to ask my permission for everything," he had simply informed her. "Just go."

Since then—for the last month—he still had said nothing about his drunken state. She hadn't had to ask him permission for routine things and when she did ask him for something he tended to consent, like when she had asked him to arrange another visit with Dee. He hadn't yelled at her since that night either, although he still snapped at her once in a while when he was really annoyed. It seemed like he was being much more patient and indulgent of her, and as much as Sarah wanted to ask about the reasoning behind it she was content to enjoy it while it lasted and not rock the boat. He was still allowing her to go through her mail and just a few days ago he had taken both her and Toby out into the garden for a few hours, though he had watched her like a hawk the entire time. It had been a very long time since she had been out if you didn't count the night she and Jareth had had their big fight—which she didn't—and the crisp air had been enjoyable this time.

"That's right," she sighed, returning to her conversation with Dee. "He hasn't really been what I would call 'loving' or 'tender' towards me, but he's been really… decent, kind of nice even, for him. I don't know what happened, though. At the beginning of the night he was cross and hateful with me, then hours later he's drunk and turns civil. He went on a hunting trip, and from what I understand they didn't manage to kill anything, so I don't see what turned his mood around so. Getting drunk doesn't have a lasting effect like this on anyone once they sober up."

Dee chuckled softly. "You are very correct in that. If feelings brought on by liquor were permanent things, I would know a great many men deeply in love and married to many ugly women. So I would have to guess that these feelings were not brought on by the drink, but perhaps amplified by it. And as far as the mood changes, I may be incorrect on this, but I have seen in my years that the species doesn't matter in the fact that it sometimes requires the absence of females for males to realize their importance. I can't count how many times I drank with male friends and the conversation would turn to how much we all appreciated or missed or loved our female companions. 'Woman' is usually the very first thing on men's minds in all things. Do you know why?" he smirked, tugging on his long beard in thought.

Sarah could only return his smile and shake her head.

Dee chuckled again and leaned a little closer to her as though sharing a secret. "Because women are the reason men exist in the first place and they are the answer to men's renewed life. Women birth us and women give us the chance to pass our very beings into new life through children."

Sarah mused over that answer for a moment before a frown came to her face. "If that's true and women are that important to them, then why do the fae males look down on women so much?"

"Probably just because they're taller," Dee shrugged nonchalantly, as though it were that simple.

Sarah couldn't help but laugh at the lame joke.

Dee smiled back before really answering. "I suppose because life can't always be fair."

Sarah didn't like that answer, but figured he was probably dead-on right. She continued rocking Mavias in her arms without thought as she looked over to check on Toby. She was surprised to see him quietly sitting on the floor, a book clutched in his little hands and his nose buried in it. "What are you looking at Toby?" she asked out of curiosity.

He barely glanced up at her, turning the book around and holding it up to show her a very detailed sketch of a giant using his bare hands to separate a man's head from his body.

X

Jareth let out a sigh as he contemplated his thoughts. Which were currently focused on Sarah and not on the white Pegasus he was leading by the bridle through The Goblin City toward the castle on his rounds through the labyrinth. Mavid walked by him, a second mare trailing behind him. Goblins would watch them with curiosity and suspicion as they passed by them in the streets, but for the most part paid their king and his attendant little mind, going about their business of trying to swindle each other and eating mystery substances left sitting on the pressed dirt paths.

Sarah had been behaving well for Jareth since the hunting trip, and he had been doing what small things he could to gain her favor since then. He didn't remember how he had managed to get back to the castle and in her room safely, and he could barely remember seeing her at all that night, much less most of what he had said to her. He knew that he had woken up in her bed and that it had been a very long time since he had felt so drugged up, continuing to sleep for the rest of the day. But he also knew that he had indeed spoken to her, and knew that it hadn't just been about table manners. Regardless of the drunken ramblings that had spilled out of him due to the drugs, he had woken with a rejuvenated patience for her it seemed. When she had started asking his expressed permission to do things once more it had simply annoyed him. She was still much too wild and reckless to be given a full reign, but he found himself allowing her a few additional small freedoms. He had informed her curtly that she needn't badger him with seeking permission for every small thing she did anymore.

An order she had been all too happy to accept.

Jareth was so lost in his thoughts that he completely missed it when Mavid said his name, and then missed it when the male stuck his leg out to catch Jareth's ankle mid-step. Jareth stumbled against his mare, who whinnied in protest as he regained his footing, turning his full and complete attention on his companion now. "What?!" he snapped, not amused.

"I spoke to you for a full three minutes before I realized you weren't listening to a word I said," Mavid snapped back. "I've been trying to ask you when Mavias will have his official initiation into his position. He's at the proper age for it now."

Jareth hadn't forgotten, but he had put off setting a date for such a thing. What Mavid was talking about was his son receiving his brand, like the one Mavid himself boasted one the back of his neck, showing his rank as a personal attendant and his connection to Jareth's family.

Branding was preferably done at a very young age so that it didn't become a problem later and also as a mercy since a babe so young would likely never even remember the pain of having it done. Jareth nodded his head to show he agreed with Mavid that they need do it soon. "I will speak with Sarah about it, to let her know it will happen. I'll also send word to my parents so that they may be there if they wish."

"I get the feeling this is something else that your wife will not understand," Mavid predicted.

He was likely right. "Why do you think she's currently with Dee? I'm hoping he will have her in the same bright mood he left her in last time with her visit. It will make it easier for both of us if she is in a good mood to start with."

"That's clever," Mavid confessed.

"I usually am," Jareth smirked arrogantly.

"I won't waste the vast amount of time it would take listing all the evidence to the contrary."

In a manner he hadn't indulged in since childhood, Jareth reached over and gave a gentle shove to the side of Mavid's head, earning a chuckle from the other male.

"As far as getting word to your parents," Mavid continued, "If you have no need of me later tonight I thought maybe I would go back to the Devine Castle for the night. I can give them the notice and even bring back the seal with me."

Mavid wanting to visit the Devine Castle didn't surprise Jareth, though it had been a very long time since he had done such a thing. When it used to just be them and the goblins out here—before Sarah and nursemaids and breedings—they would regularly make trips together into the woods to seek out nymphs, or to other kingdoms seeking companions for the night. It was easiest to go back to the Devine castle, however, since the servants there were well-known to both of them and wouldn't refuse.

"Thinking of anyone in particular?" Jareth smirked knowingly.

"I have a mind for Gianna," Mavid confessed. "It's been long enough that I wish to really let go tonight and she actually enjoys a bit of a whipping."

If Mavid was in a mind to 'let go' she would like receive a lot more than just a 'bit' of a whipping. Jareth simply nodded his head. "Let my parents know that I will contact them tomorrow with a proper date for the occasion."

Mavid nodded his head, his mind already drifting elsewhere. No doubt to the Devine Castle.

Following that there was a silence, in which Jareth tried to choose his wording for the question he needed to ask Mavid. "Did you… _want_ to make the mark? Being that he's your offspring?"

Typically the branding was done by the buyer or financer of the child, which was Jareth. Mavid seemed to think it over for no more than a few seconds before he shook his head no. "I would rather not," he simply said, a statement that Jareth found surprising and predictable at the same time. Something like this would normally have been right up Mavid's alley, but at the same time he could understand why Mavid would stay his hand when it came to causing the suffering of his own flesh and blood—however temporary it may be. It wasn't a task that Jareth wished for himself either, but it needed to be done, and such was his responsibility. Being a king meant that some of the hardest tasks were his and his alone to tend to.

"Before long we should start looking into tutors for them as well," Mavid stated, causing Jareth to smirk over how fussy he was being about the children today.

"Yes _darling_ , I will see to it," Jareth teased, earning another attempted tripping from his comrade.

X

Supper was a quiet affair, although it was for once a comfortable silence rather than a tense, sit-on-the-edge-of-your-seat kind of silence.

Sarah was sort of enjoying it actually, smiling to herself when Mavias's little head finally dipped down to rest against his father's bicep as he submitted to sleep. Mavid hadn't noticed yet, holding his son in his lap through supper as he normally did, but Sarah had been keeping an eye on him since his eyes had started drooping at the start of the meal. He had already slept for quite a bit earlier today, but to look now you would think he had missed his nap altogether. He was so adorable with his little sleeping baby face and line of drool dripping from his lip down to the arm Mavid held him securely with. Mavid was too busy making quick work of his own meal to notice it yet, already down to the last few bites as though he had other things to do.

Sarah had only gotten a third of the way through her plate, and she was surprised when she looked over to see that Jareth had eaten even less than her, having seemed too distracted for food up until now. Usually he kept pace with Mavid and they were left waiting on her for a little bit.

Supper was shortly cleared away and Mavid passed his son off to her, wiping the drool from his arm with a napkin before bidding both her and Jareth farewell for the night and making his exit. Sarah wanted to ask Jareth about it, but he simply told her it was nothing important before scooping a tired Toby up in his arms as well, leading them all up to the nursery in silence.

There was obviously something on his mind, and as much as Sarah wanted to ask him what it was she also knew by now that she likely didn't want to know. Whatever it was it was causing him to fret and that usually meant nothing good for her. Like meeting with the Council and having supper with his father.

It wasn't until they were finished with their nightly bath together and preparing for bed that Jareth finally broke the silence between them.

"Did you enjoy your time with Dee?" he asked, his tone impartial enough that Sarah could tell he was asking for a diversion rather than because he actually cared about her visit.

"I did," she relented, but spoke no more on the subject, pulling the covers back on her side of the massive bed. She climbed in, noticing when Jareth stayed standing, his fur-lined robe loosely tide at his waist. His eyes snapped away from hers, refusing to meet them as he stalled from climbing into bed with her. Something was definitely on his mind. Now Sarah felt she had to ask. "What's wrong?"

There was a long silence following her question, as though he hadn't even heard her. After the longest time when Sarah was almost convinced he wouldn't answer her he finally spoke. "I have a duty coming up that I must see to, although I wish very much I didn't." He let out another sigh and sat down on the edge of the bed, still not meeting her eyes. "I will not mince words when I say that I believe you will hate me for it… for a time."

A heavy feeling of foreboding settled into Sarah's gut at his statement and she tried to brace herself as her brain raced with all the possibly horrible things he was about to tell her he needed to do. Was he going to punish her for something? She hadn't done anything wrong… had she?

Unable to find her right words, Sarah could only wait for him to continue.

Jareth's free hand had absentmindedly drifted to the amulet that hung from his neck, his forefinger tracing the curved edge. "Mavias is growing every day. One day he will grow into a trusted friend and invaluable attendant for Toby. Personal attendants are placed above servants for a reason, Sarah. Theirs is a title that demands a certain level of respect even from their superiors. They are irreplaceable to the one they serve, bonded to that person till their death."

She had no clue where this was going, but now that she was certain it had something to do with Mavias rather than her the sinking feeling in her gut had intensified and twisted till she almost felt queasy and she still wasn't sure why. "What are you trying to say?" she forced out.

"Every personal attendant in this world is identified by their bond to their superior. The bond is displayed by a visual marking upon their skin. You've seen the brand on the back of Mavid's neck? That is a sign to all that he is _my_ attendant and he will be till his last breath. It instantly provides him with respect from common servants and subjects, acknowledgement from his betters, and protection from those who would seek to harm or use him. There is no personal attendant that is not branded."

Sarah's eyes widened in her alarm. "You plan to brand Mavias?!"

"I don't wish to do so, but-

"Then don't!" she shouted, every maternal instinct in her body flaring up. "You say 'brand', you can't actually mean what I think you mean… like with a red-hot piece of iron being pressed against his skin and all that?!" She was sure she was wrong, that it meant something else to them down here, like maybe it was something they did with magic.

"I'm afraid that that's exactly what I mean."

"You can't brand a baby!" she screeched, noticing when Jareth flinched from her tone. He turned to fix her with a glare but she was far from caring given the subject matter. "How can your kind even think of doing such a thing to a little baby?" Sarah hissed in anger.

Jareth stood up from the bed then, turning to face her and placing his hands on his hips. His own anger was apparent as he towered over her. He kept his voice level as he spoke to her, "It's better for them this way. They never remember the pain, and the mark will protect them from the possibility of being taken and traded about like a common servant. Even in the Black Magic Market it is illegal to buy and sell a branded attendant."

"Plus they can't fight back." Sarah chimed in bitterly. "Isn't that right?"

Jareth's face turned very dark and Sarah's stomach jumped when he stalked around the bed to her side. It had been a while since he had glared at her like that and although she managed to put on a brave face for the sake of Mavias, she still flinched just a little when he placed one hand on the headboard behind her and the other on the far side of her on the bed, caging her as she leaned back against the headboard so that their faces wouldn't touch with how close he was.

"Listen to me, little pious one," Jareth drawled out, "You have no room to judge me or my people's custom in this. Your kind mutilates baby boys every day in the Aboveground. If I understand right it's just as common practice as this. That despicable harlot Carrie even allowed such a thing to happen to my own son."

"What are you talking about?"

"Do you think I haven't seen my own son?" Jareth bit out, "That I've never once noticed the scaring given to his member?"

Sarah's eyes widened that he could compare the two things. "He was circumcised Jareth, it's actually healthier for him!" she couldn't believe she was even having to defend it.

"It's unnatural and boorish to do such a thing to males. The matter of whether it's right or wrong aside, it happens in the Aboveground just as brandings happen down here. If you can accept one practice you can accept the other. After all, I had no choice but to accept what had happened to my own son, and one day he will have to accept it too."

He spoke as though Toby had lost his arm or something. Sarah wanted to roll her eyes at his dramatics but with Jareth so close still she dared not. There was no way she was going to back down on this though. "Branding happens in the Aboveground too, Jareth… to cattle! Branding is something reserved for livestock and property. But I suppose that's all Mavias is to you isn't it?"

Jareth's hand came up and Sarah braced herself for the slap, surprised when it didn't come. Jareth's face was a picture of rage still, but his hand slowly clenched into a fist in the air before he let it drop back to the headboard. His voice was very tight when he spoke. "Until something intelligent can pass through your mouth I'll thank you to keep it shut. You don't know what you're talking about. If you did you would know what a hurtful thing that is to say."

There did seem to be something akin to hurt in his eyes, buried deep behind the anger that was glaring out at her from his mismatched orbs. Sarah almost wanted to regret saying that, knowing deep down that it wasn't true, but she was too focused on what may happen to Mavias to really care about Jareth's hurt feelings at the moment. "If he's not property to you than I don't see how you can so easily disregard his wellbeing for the sake of tradition. I suppose next you'll have to brand Toby—he belongs to you too, doesn't he?" she drawled sarcastically. "Or me, how long before you place your brand on me?"

Jareth's intense eyes flicked down to her right hand and she looked down to where it fixed on her lap as he reached down and flicked his finger across the signet ring she wore that marked her as queen. "I already have," he stated smugly.

Rage instantly filled her to a point where she could feel the heat in the skin of her face. She tried once again to pull at the ring, ready to tear her finger off with it if she had to. Jareth slapped her hand away, leaving the back of her left hand stinging slightly. Her eyes shot up to his and she matched his glare, wishing like hell that she could hit him. She couldn't remember the last time she had felt so tempted.

"Don't touch me!" she practically shouted in her anger, moving her hand away from Jareth. She gave up on the ring for the moment. Anger was flashing in his eyes like a beacon of warning.

She couldn't help but flinch when Jareth reached out and seized her chin in his hand, digging in with his fingers so it would hurt. "I'll touch you if I want to, precious," he hissed, his hot breath burning across her lips because she was so close. His patience was officially spent. She reached up to grab his wrist, but dropped her hand immediately when he squeezed down harder on her jaw. She hated this part more than anything. This was the part where even though she tried to be brave and despite her best efforts of being strong, Jareth would prove to her that she really had no upper hand on him. If she angered him enough he would hit her. If she hit back he would probably have her on the floor wondering how she had gotten there within seconds, and then what? It wouldn't change her situation for the better in any way and she would just be in more pain for it. She took solace from mentally screaming every curse she could think of at him, thankful that at least he couldn't control her mind.

Jareth continued to glare down at her, "You do not tell me what to do and you shall not act so defiantly towards me when I am only explaining to you what must be done."

"But why?! Why must it be done? If you must put a brand on him why does it have to be in such a crude fashion? Surely there's some sort of magic you could use instead that wouldn't hurt him, or maybe… I don't know… maybe an actual tattoo as opposed to the alternative."

Jareth released her jaw, a little of the anger gone from his face as he shook his head. "Both could be removed or covered up. The scaring of the flesh is a permanent thing that even magic cannot take away, which is why my kind hold such a distaste for scars and disfigurements. A branding is seen differently than a scar, but it is essentially the same thing. I would no sooner be able to cover the scars on Mavid's back than I would the brand on his neck."

Sarah still didn't want it to happen. She couldn't let it happen. She looked up at the ceiling to help hold back her unshed tears that were threatening her as she tried to think of another tactic she could try.

Jareth let out a heavy sigh and surprised her when he ran his hand over the side of her cheek gently, even while she still ached from where he had held it previously. But wasn't that always the way it went? She was even more surprised still when he bent down and placed soft kisses against her forehead and cheeks, dropping down to his knees between her legs for a more comfortable angle as he moved his lips against hers gently. Another long sigh escaped him and Sarah didn't move when he rested his forehead against her shoulder, his strong hands stroking up and down her arms as he seemed to go through another of his infamous mood swings. Sometimes she found herself wishing more than anything that he would at least be consistent with her, that if he was raging mad he would stay that way because it would be better than never knowing what was coming or what would trigger any of his moods.

His hands trailed down her arms a final time and Sarah couldn't think of how to react when he clasped her hands in his. He didn't move at first when he finally did speak. "Sarah, I don't need this," his voice was tense and wary as he lifted his head and pulled back enough to look her in the eyes now. "I swear to the gods below that I don't need this from you right now. This isn't something I want to have happen either, lesser still that I wish to carry out myself. You treat me as though I want this to happen. I don't, but it must for the sake of both of the children. It is extremely difficult for me to keep defending this to you when deep inside I wish for it to not happen at all."

"Then don't do it," Sarah pleaded, feeling as tired as Jareth looked about this discussion. She reached up and ran her own hand over the side of his cheek, trying to gain his favor.

Jareth leaned his head into it, placing his hand over the back of hers to hold it there. It was a little bit more endearing than she had anticipated. She watched numbly as he turned his head to kiss her palm. "It is my duty, precious."

She felt her heart drop, feeling as though she was losing this battle without him yelling at her or shoving her around. In fact, he was doing the exact opposite and she was still losing. With the wary look on his face it hardly seemed like he was winning, though. "How am I supposed to stand back and just let that happen?" she asked, knowing she wouldn't be able to.

"You must, precious, for it is your duty to do so. You must find a way to support this, to support _me_."

Why not just ask her to swallow the moon?

When she said nothing Jareth let out a final sigh and placed another shallow kiss against her unmoving lips. "You won't have any other choice."

X

It felt like his insides were on fire and ice cold at the same time. While it was extremely uncomfortable Jareth feared he was getting used to that discomfort, for it had been with him for the last three days… ever since Mavid had returned to the Castle and presented him with the little rod that ended in the small spiraling design of the family seal that had been forged long before even his grandfather's time for the purpose of branding personal attendants. Jareth had placed his hand over the small seal easily, the metal currently cool to the touch, thinking about the countless pieces of flesh it had pressed up against. He could practically feel the agony on his fingertips.

It weighed heavy on his mind that at this moment the branding iron was sitting in the throne room, which had been closed off to goblins for the last few days while the brownies scrubbed it clean, perched so that the end sat right at the base of the fire, where it would grow the most heated so that the blackness of the metal would turn a mix of red and yellow.

The brownies hadn't been happy to leave their spotless kitchen to tackle the throne room for him, but he had appeased them with large bowls of wolf's milk set just inside their kitchen door every night after supper. It had quelled their mutterings.

Sarah had not yet spoken to him today. Last night she had asked one last time for him to refuse to do this. He had of course ignored her, despite wishing that he could appease her this time. She hadn't spoken much at all to anyone, save for Mavias, who she cradled in her arms protectively and whispered calming nothings to. It was for herself rather than the babe, however, who had never been so at ease in his ignorance of what was yet to happen today. Although Jareth had explained it to Toby, he was sure his son didn't fully understand. He was currently standing next to Sarah, one tiny fist hanging onto her skirts while the rest of his attention was focused on one of the buttons on the little vest he wore. He fiddled with it, determined to learn how to unbutton it for himself and having no luck.

Jareth hardly remembered Mavid's receiving of the mark, only a vague memory of the fear he had felt when Mavid had started screaming. He had been older than Mavias when he had gone through it, so although Mavid remembered it, which his son would not, Mavid had confessed that he didn't remember the pain, just the healing salves that had been constantly slathered over it for weeks afterward while it healed. He had found far greater annoyance with those than he had with the initial process, which had been finished in but a mere matter of seconds. He recalled the worst thing about it had been not being allowed to play or roughhouse at all… at least not while Jareth's mother was watching, anyway.

Speaking of—his parent's arrival to the goblin castle did nothing to ease his distress, everyone giving stiff and forced greetings as their minds were all heavy on the fact that it brought them all that much closer to the appointed hour.

Jareth's parents were there to show their support and to bear witness to this milestone event in Mavias's life, as was customary. As little comfort as they might in fact offer, Jareth found it a comfort none the less for them to be there as his stomach continued to twist. His father gave him one of his rare embraces and Jareth couldn't help but lean on the one other male in the room that could empathize with him.

"Well," Hamold sighed, refusing to beat around the bush as he claimed the room's attention. "Shall we get started?"

"We are awaiting my cousin Ishapelle," Jareth informed him, watching out of the corner of his eye when Sarah perked up just a little bit with interest. He had purposely kept this from her till now. "I invited her here to show her support for the children, which she grew so fond of during her time assisting my wife." The real truth was he had invited her for Sarah's sake, thinking that the female being there might help her to deal with this. Ishapelle had been only too happy to accept.

"Perhaps we can retire to the amber sitting room while we wait," Jareth suggested, showing that he had paid attention so at least some of his parent's teaching on being a courteous host. "I have drinks waiting for us in there." When there were no objections he gave a nod to Mavid that he was to continue to wait in the front hall so that he could bring Ishapelle to them when she finally arrived and Jareth led the rest of the party to the sitting room nearby.

This sitting room was a personal preference for Jareth, who favored the interior made up of tasteful mixings of ambers, soft yellows, and deep browns to that of the red and black sitting room that Sarah usually took to. It normally calmed him, although there was little a room could do for his ill-ease at the moment. Jareth's parents picked out their seats first, taking up two armchairs that faced a small ornate couch on the other side of a small table. His father's attendant, Erib, went over to stand at the wall behind them without hesitation.

Sarah took her place on the end of the couch, settling Mavias into her lap so that her arms would be free to assist Toby up onto the seat next to her. She stopped, however, when Hamold waved his hand dismissively at her; calling his grandson over to him in the pristine language. A scowl slipped over Sarah's face momentarily and Jareth felt the faintest hint of pride when she quickly covered it up, turning her attention from his father back to Mavias, who she brought back up to cradle against her chest as Toby made his way around the table to heed his grandfather's beckoning.

The wine goblets were set out on the short table between the seats and Jareth took one up to ease his nerves, sipping at it as he took a seat in a long-backed chair set out rather than taking up the empty seat next to Sarah. While she was behaving herself well enough given the circumstances, she was no comfort to him with her cold stares and a posture that grew tense whenever he was within two feet of her.

Hamold lifted his grandson up into his lap and affectionately tweaked his nose. "He's a handsome boy, Jareth," his father addressed him, still in the pristine language. He was insistent that it be spoken as often as possible around the toddler so that he could just naturally soak it up. While Jareth agreed with this, he still cast a glance to Sarah, feeling just a little bit of guilt that it was being spoken like this in front of her when she wasn't allowed to learn it. Jareth was willing to suspect that Hamold may be using it as a small measure of flaunting that fact by using it in front of her and using it to remind her of her place with them. She was still staring down at Mavias, tickling his stomach and making him smile, but her attention was on Hamold and Toby.

"Shall we speak in common language?" Kaleen suggested, casting a pointed look to her husband and sliding it over to Sarah, in case he somehow missed the hint.

Hamold's eyes narrowed and he seemed prepared to snap at her, but Jareth agreed before he got the chance. "Yes, he is handsome," he responded to Hamold in common language. "Thank you."

Hamold slid an annoyed glance over to Jareth. "As long as he doesn't grow up all stringy like you did," he shrugged, speaking in common language as well now.

"Stop that Hamold, Jareth filled out very nicely," Kaleen insisted.

Jareth glanced back and forth between his parents, uncaring of their remarks on his appearance. Their postures were both tense and their faces tight. Years had taught him that these were the signs that they had had another one of their fights, possibly just before they arrived.

Jareth rolled his eyes and turned his head away from them. He did not need this today. Whatever argument they were having between them right now didn't matter as long as they kept it between them for the evening. He had enough to focus on already. His eyes shifted over to Sarah as she held Mavias in her lap still, but he couldn't bring himself to look directly at the child himself. The closest he could manage were the skirts of Sarah's dress. When his eyes moved back up to her face he was met with a pair of green eyes glowering at him as though every fault in the world today was his.

With another sigh he let the rest of his drink slide down his throat and rose from his seat, moving over to his father and scooping up Toby without a word of explanation for himself. Toby's little arms wrapped around his neck and his head rested under his chin as Jareth moved around the room with him, trying to ease his own tension as he did his best to cope with what he would have to do.

He felt almost like his mind was in a fog as he held his son to him and watched Sarah as she studied the round little features of Mavias's sweet baby face. She ran a finger down his tiny nose and he smiled up at her, his blue eyes bright and his cheeks unbelievably plump when he smiled that big. She couldn't help but smile back and picked him up from her lap to hold against her chest once more, placing a kiss against the side of his head. Jareth was aware of Hamold and Kaleen watching both of them as they coddled the children; their expressions all too understanding as they sat in silence for the moment.

Sarah jumped when the door opened and Mavid led in Ishapelle, who only stopped long enough to bow to both kings in the room before taking the seat left open next to Sarah, whispering something to her in hushed encouragement. Sarah sent her the most grateful look she could muster, reaching over to take her hand. Jareth felt relieved that he had thought to invite his cousin to be here for Sarah; it was obvious she would need the support.

There were no words spoken for a while, as no one could think of anything they wanted to say that was worth breaking the tension that practically stuck to the walls it was so thick.

It was Hamold that eventually picked up another glass of wine and stood up with a sigh. "Perhaps we should move this along."

He was right, but Jareth couldn't refrain from casting his father a dark look over his son's head. "You do not get to decide that here," he drawled, an undercurrent of malice in his tone. He knew it was an unnecessary act of belligerency, for there was no more reason to wait and he had already stalled in his task, but he couldn't stop himself from doing so.

"What are we waiting for?" Hamold hissed back, his own tension obviously getting to him.

Brandings always put everyone on edge like this. It seemed odd that it would upset the very race that was determined to uphold it so. But Jareth knew he was as bound to the task not for the sake of tradition, but for the safety and security it would insure Mavias.

Jareth simply stared back at his father for a moment before casting his eyes back down to his son and continuing his slow pace around the room, unable to come up with an acceptable answer.

"Hamold—" Kaleen implored, like she was intent to ask him to retake his seat, but the king was having none of it.

"If we're waiting for that other cousin of yours to get here we best just move along right now. We wasted enough time waiting for _her_ ," he scoffed, gesturing to Ishapelle, whose face turned almost purple it was so red and her eyes turned glassy with held-back tears of embarrassment. Sarah reached out and took her hand to reassure her, her own cheeks burning in empathy for the female. She dared to cast a glare at the king, but he did not notice, his attention on Jareth, who was shooting him a few looks of his own. "I refuse to sit around for the whole night while you put off your responsibility," he continued, scolding Jareth in front of everyone as though he were an adolescent again. Jareth's blood boiled with rage but he was forced to restrain himself completely with his son in his arms. He didn't even trust himself to say anything back to his father with Toby right there.

"Hamold—" Kaleen tried again, her tone sharp.

"You speak when I want you to," Hamold snapped down at her. Kaleen slowly leaned back in her chair, looking enraged to just be in the room with him at that moment. With his wife subdued for the moment Hamold turned back to Jareth.

Jareth could do nothing but continue to glare at his father as the king moved across the room to where he stood, full of intent rather than threat. Both attendants in the room stood at the ready just in case that changed, sizing each other up from across the backs of the couches as a lifetime of training demanded.

Jareth shifted his son a little further away from Hamold as the older male moved in close, hushing his tone so that he spoke only to Jareth, the others in the room unable to hear. "It will be the hardest thing you ever do," Hamold warned him, the sudden softness in his voice enough to bring Jareth's eyes up to his. Through the unyielding determination that could always be found in Hamold's eyes he could see something else there, an almost haunted look.

Toby turned in Jareth's arms to his grandfather, reaching out to take hold of one of the long dark locks of his hair that hung within his reach. Hamold smiled down at him momentarily and brought his hand up to touch his back. "I almost refused to do it myself, once upon a time," he confessed. "I couldn't refuse though, for no other reason than the knowledge that I had to do it for you, and for Mavid. It is the first step in a road full of life lessons that they must go through, just as you two did. It is also the pinnacle of your own lessons in what it is to be a king and a father, just as it was for me."

The anger towards his father was wearing away, leaving him feeling a tad deflated as Jareth let go the last of his rage with a sigh. The absence of anger left him with nothing but the weariness and dread of before. His father was right, that it needed to be done and that his reasons for hesitating were cowardly and selfish. Jareth closed his eyes and drew in a deep breath to try and steady himself. It helped only the tiniest bit, the feelings from before still clawing at his stomach, but the main thing was that it had indeed helped, and so had Hamold's guidance.

Jareth nodded his head to show he agreed since he didn't trust his voice just yet, allowing it when Hamold retrieved Toby from his arms, shifting his grandson to sit on his hip so he could freely sip from his wine glass in his other hand. Jareth took another small breath and looked back to the others in the room, seeing that on the sofa Sarah was still glaring daggers at his father's back, her eyes shooting away when they met Jareth's gaze and instead turning back to Ishapelle.

"Shall we continue to the throne room?" Jareth beckoned with a newfound resolve.

X

Sarah had never felt so sick in her life as she sat next to Mavias's crib, reaching through the bars to stroke his sleeping face and legs. He wore only his diaper, and a large gauze bandage that covered his neck and upper back like some horrible backpack. Whatever Aboris had given him to sleep worked like a charm, for he had gone from sobbing uncontrollably to snoozing serenely in just a matter of minutes. Sarah was glad he was sleeping through the pain.

"The healing salve is one of the best made. Aboris said it had griffin saliva in it. It should heal in record time," Ishapelle informed her from across the cradle, where she too was smiling down at Mavias. Sarah was glad to hear it, running her hand down Mavias's arm.

While the branding hadn't been as utterly horrifying as she had pictured in her head, it had still been hard to stand. The first thing that had surprised her was that the branding iron had been much, much smaller than she had originally envisioned, looking as though someone had connected a quarter to a fork. The size of the mark would grow as he did, so of course it would need to start out small. For some reason before this she had looked at the brand on Mavid's neck, which was almost the size of Jareth's pendant, and had illogically thought it would start out the same size. The fact that it had been small had seemed like little comfort for the way she had started to sweat and her vision had momentarily spun when Jareth had approached Mavias with the small but red hot object.

Ishapelle had been at her side, allowing Sarah to keep her hand in a death grip and she was pretty sure at some point Ishapelle had even held her up a little. On her other side had been Jareth's mother, who only reached out to Sarah when Aboris had held Mavias up for Jareth's better access. Even then she had only placed her hand on Sarah's shoulder, her grip firm as though she had not been so intent on comforting her as she had been in making sure if she had to she could hold Sarah back. Next to the queen Hamold had stood still holding onto Toby, who had been watching with ignorant interest as Jareth had placed one hand on the back of the babe's head to keep it down while he had positioned the small iron behind his neck.

Sarah had been able to see Mavid and Erib across from them in the throne room, standing out of the way and watching as it had all happened. They'd looked on, tense where they had stood, and Sarah was able to tell that Mavid had his back pressed firmly against the wall behind him, unlike Erib who had been standing about a foot in front of it.

Every instinct in her had screamed at her to run out and stop this from happening and she had been equally paralyzed where she stood, unable to do anything more than stare and break out in a cold sweat as Jareth had quickly pressed the coin-size iron against the back of Mavias's neck and removed it after a distinct sizzling noise penetrated the still of the room. Sarah's vision swam and she had wanted to choke when the very faint smell of charred meat hit her nose. It was everything she could do at the time to control her breathing enough to keep on her feet.

Mavias hadn't cried at first—his face freezing up into one of shock such as Sarah had never seen on a baby's face—seconds before his brows knitted and he let out a cry so sudden and intense that Sarah's eardrums had rang with it. Aboris had stepped up first thing and tossed a bit of blue powder in his little face, which had been what ultimately put Mavias into a peaceful sleep as he had dressed the wound.

Upon Mavias's cries Toby had startled and began screaming in his grandfather's arms, who then passed him off promptly to Kaleen so she could set about calming him down. "It's alright my little prince," she had cooed, her voice ringing in Sarah's ears even though she hardly spoke in more than a whisper. Ishapelle had been saying something to her but she hadn't been able to hear it, and frankly hadn't cared at the moment. Her head had still been spinning, her body sweating. Across the room the attendants had still been just looking on, solid as statues. Right in front of her Aboris had dressed the burn, Jareth helping where he could.

It had still been Kaleen's voice that trumped out all the other commotion in the room for Sarah, even over Toby's cries. "Don't cry anymore, little prince," she had cooed again. "He is yours now." She had placed a kiss against his forehead as he continued to cry. "Oh, there there, be still now precious. I know it's upsetting, but the important thing is that he is all yours now. Sometimes there just has to be tears shed in the process. They are nothing to be concerned over."

Sarah's face twisted into a scowl at the memory of Kaleen's words. Who said such things?

"He looks so sweet when he sleeps," Ishapelle sighed, looking down at Mavias wistfully. "But then, perhaps all babes do. Toby certainly does."

Sarah looked over to the other crib in the room, where Toby was also sleeping soundly. It was as though earlier had never happened. They weren't the only ones acting like nothing had happened. Downstairs the others were gathering in the dining room, where Jareth had pointedly told her he expected her to be too, so that they could all celebrate together.

She wished she had been put to sleep by Aboris, too.

"Thank you for coming Ishapelle," she sighed, truly meaning it.

The female offered her a soft smile. "You've said that to me too much tonight. I was happy to come. I missed you certainly, but in complete honesty this visit has given me an escape as well."

"An escape?" Sarah asked, straightening up as she gave Ishapelle her full attention now.

Ishapelle rolled her eyes and sighed like the mere thought of her personal life were annoying to her. "My wedding cannot come soon enough. So far the preparations are a hassle at the very _least_. The preparations, however, are nothing compared to the three males in my life right now. Father is overbearing and unrelenting. You would think this was his wedding with how he plans out everything, but then goes on and on with complaints about the costs of things he himself picked out. Bastile is always busy; I have only seen him once for a few hours since returning home. I have doubts he even wants to see me. But the worst to deal with is Torik."

"I was wondering why he wasn't with you."

"Because I needed the break from his constant moping. He keeps expecting me to call off the wedding, as though I could. He just doesn't understand. He makes me feel bad because he's so unhappy. As much as I wish I could do something to make him happy again I can't. He has to accept that this is happening as I have but he refuses. I don't know what to do." She lets out another sigh. "We had best head to dinner before we are missed."

Unable to disagree, Sarah nodded her head in compliance and stroked her hand over both Mavias and Toby's heads in a final gesture of affection before following Ishapelle out of the nursery, closing it up behind her.

"What should I do about Torik?" Ishapelle whispered to her as they walked.

Sarah's mind was so focused on the events that had happened earlier she had to think to remember what she was even talking about. Even when she remembered she still had no answer. It must have showed on her face because Ishapelle pressed on.

"I just can't take him being so upset with me all the time. It just gets worse every day as the wedding creeps nearer. As though that weren't enough he's also still very angry with me about Mavid and I just can't think of any way to cheer him up that I haven't already tried."

Sarah's head whipped around fast enough to dislodge one of the strands of hair from the curled mass atop her head. "Mavid—what about Mavid?"

Ishapelle blanched, obviously either assuming she knew something she didn't or not wanting to tell her about it.

Sarah picked up the pieces quick enough from context and the blush of embarrassment on Ishapelle's pale cheeks. "You were with Mavid?!" she gawked in disbelief.

Ishapelle stopped walking finally, but didn't turn to face Sarah, looking around the hall as though she feared someone happening upon them. "Please keep your voice down."

Sarah stared and waited.

Finally Ishapelle looked her in the eyes. "I—I was, yes."

"When?"

"The night before I returned home," she whispered, her voice still quiet but lacking hesitation.

Sarah tried to think back. She had left the day after finding out about her engagement, and they had talked in Ishapelle's room right after that. In the morning she supposed she kind of remembered Mavid's fair mood and Torik's scowl, but she had been too focused on her friend leaving her to pay them any mind. "You had just told me a list of reasons that day of why you've said no to him all this time!"

Ishapelle blushed again and her eyes shifted to the ground. "I am aware of that."

"Can I ask why?" Sarah pressed, unwilling to let it just drop and not caring about being late to dinner.

Ishapelle took a deep breath. "I suppose… new reasons came to outweigh the old ones that night."

Ishapelle took a step to continue on as though that answered everything, and maybe on some level Sarah knew she should let it drop since it wasn't really her business, but she was still stunned enough from the news itself that she continued to stand there and wait for Ishapelle to say more. Ishapelle reluctantly stepped back to her. "Are you angry with me for it?" she asked, direct and to the point as her eyes met Sarah's, her face expressionless.

Sarah blanched at the surprising question. "What, I—no I'm not mad at you. I have no reason to be," she assured her.

"Are you judging me for this then?"

She was more than a little surprised by Ishapelle's direct questioning in such a cool tone as her face stayed emotionless. She had seen many fae do this, but it still made her nervous when it happened. It was like a defense mechanism of theirs or something. "No, and why are you acting so aloof with me?" Sarah questioned, thinking perhaps she _should_ have just left it alone.

"I will answer any questions you ask me to—as you are my superior in class rank I must—but I do not like this feeling of having to explain and justify myself for such a trivial thing to someone I consider a friend. It was only for the night and it was just sex."

Sarah was shocked at this realization that Ishapelle was apparently mad at her for something she hadn't meant to do. "Ishapelle, I'm not trying to judge you or make you feel bad about anything you did. I'm just confused about the whole situation and trying to understand."

At her explanation Ishapelle's pursed lips relaxed a bit, her eyes searching Sarah's face for honesty. She must have seen it because she suddenly became a lot less tense and let out a soft little sigh. "I apologize."

"Me too," Sarah said in earnest, reaching out to take Ishapelle's hand in hers. She felt relieved when Ishapelle squeezed her hand back as well. After a moment and an exchanged little smile from them both they started making their way to the dining hall again.

It was Ishapelle that spoke up first. "I guess I know the biggest reason I did it."

Sarah said nothing but glanced over with interest.

"I was sick of being at everyone else's control, sick of feeling passed around and played with like a doll. I know it's strange I went to Mavid for that reason since sex with him is all about control and he likes to have it all—"

Sarah was barely able to keep the scowl off her face, remembering Tallia and the marks she had seen on her. Tallia had told her that he liked to be rough.

"But I had nowhere else to go. I had my father arranging my marriage for me, Torik in my ear trying to think up ways for me to get around it even though there are none—just reminding me of how helpless I was, and Bastile would one day have as much or as little say as he wishes over everything I do. Once we're married he will have the right to tell me when and if I may see anyone beside him. I needed to feel like I could make a choice on something. I chose to change my mind and seek out Mavid. He didn't turn me away."

Sarah didn't entirely understand, but she supposed she could sort of get it and nodded her head in understanding anyway. There was one more question that she felt compelled to ask, however, out of concern for her friend. "Did he hurt you?"

Ishapelle's cheeks retained their pinkness. "There was a little pain I suppose, but he didn't hurt me. It was a warm sort of pain."

Sarah really didn't understand what she was talking about then, but she couldn't question it further for they had come to the dining hall and she had a new pain of her own to focus on. She inwardly cringed at the knowledge that right behind those doors would be not only Jareth and Mavid, but also Jareth's mother and father, and she would be dining with them.

X

Jareth took another drink of his wine glass, ignoring the majority of the food on his plate. After the night he had had he was not interested in keeping entirely sober and already had a warm and pleasant hum in his brain and the world teetered a little every time he turned his head too fast. It was sort of funny when it happened but he knew far better still than to whip his head back and forth at the head of the dinner table. His father was speaking to him currently and he made himself try to focus on what he was saying, gathering only that it had something to do with him. "Hmm?" Jareth replied, keeping his glass in his hand.

Hamold's eyes narrowed at having to repeat himself, but Jareth didn't mind putting his father through the minor inconvenience, the goblin wine tart and dry on his tongue.

Everyone else sat and ate their meal, even Sarah, whom Jareth had been worried would have no appetite because of earlier, made an effort to eat a little something.

"I asked if you had started looking into tutors for the children yet? Toby will be upon that age before you know it. I believe the tutor we had for you and Mavid is still in the business. What was his name Kaleen?"

Jareth's mother looked up from her meal and cast a cool gaze at her husband. "Which one would you be referring to? Any time they were taught anything you didn't approve of you got a new tutor. It's a wonder they got a full education at all."

Hamold waved off his wife's remark without concern. "The faun. That old one with the ridiculous horns."

"You fired him too, why would you want to recommend him for Toby and Mavias when you so fiercely disagreed with him teaching your own son?"

Jareth remembered that one actually because the faun had been tutoring closer to his adolescent years. The faun had been a fine teacher, insanely clever and wise, but his father and he had resented each other immensely because the faun did not believe that the fae were superior to other races (or at least didn't deserve to be) and his father very much did believe this, as any king of the fae race should. The faun had told Jareth and Mavid that their magic—that all fae magic—was twisted and tainted because it didn't belong to them. He had believed some old story about how the fae had once been weak and powerless till a couple of ambitious and conniving fae snuck into a dragon's den and one managed to escape with the dragon's power, sharing it with his race. It was completely false. Hamold had fired him for that.

"I believe his name was Arboricious, father, and no I will not be hiring him. My son is at an impressionable age. I will prefer to employ a fae tutor."

"I will get you some names Jareth," Kaleen offered.

Jareth nodded his head in appreciation and took another drink from his goblet. He had no intention of getting drunk, but would keep the buzz going for as long as he could manage. It made the world less harsh and replaced the smell of burnt flesh in his nose with the sweetness of the berries making up the wine. It took the image of sorrow on his son's face from his mind's eye when he had watched Mavias start crying hysterically. It helped to fade away a bit of the guilt that tugged at his chest when he remembered how white Sarah had turned as she watched.

Jareth closed his eyes and took another drink. He couldn't think of anything in his life that had been so hard to do. This was what his father had warned him about.

This dinner was the last thing Jareth had wanted to do after… that, but he had again had no choice. It was part of the tradition to have a bit of a celebration afterwards; a way to forget about all the unpleasantness and look forward to all the future held for the prince and his attendant, now bound to be together for life.

He looked over to the wall behind Sarah and Ishapelles' backs, where Mavid was leaning against the wall. He looked tired, his head leaning back and his eyes half closed, but the small smile that teased the corners of his lips gave him all the look of satisfaction with the night's events. His son's future was secure now.

That small smile caused Jareth to think back on the things he and Mavid had gone through together, for there was a lot of history there. Schooling, adolescence, fights, females, and countless adventures. Toby and Mavias would have all that to look back on one day. A small smile of satisfaction forced its way to his own mouth and he let out a breath he hadn't known he'd been holding on to. For the first time what he had done felt just a little bit right.


	42. Chapter 42

_Beta for this chapter is ASunInWinter_

X

Sarah's mind was still reeling as she lifted her wine up to her lips and took a deep drink, and then another one. She didn't mean to always do this, but it seemed nowadays it got easier and easier to deal with the more unpleasant parts of life when she was just a little off-center. It hadn't escaped her attention that Jareth had also been putting away his fair share of goblin wine tonight.

At the current moment the thing grating on her already shot nerves the most was undoubtedly Kaleen's voice as she continued to prattle on about nothing with her son. Sarah actually wished that they would switch back to their precious pristine language. At least then she'd be spared understanding some of Kaleen's thoughts on the raising of the boys.

"I'm just thankful that you are partial to a fae tutor. Honestly there's too few other races that can be trusted with such an important job. Not to mention the lack of proper education amongst some of the races. I do not know how you hold no concern for the children being brought up amongst goblins. All else aside how will they ever manage to learn proper manners in this castle?"

Jareth cast his mother a patient smile and took another sip of his wine. "I hope you don't think I intend to leave the teachings of my child and his attendant to such creatures."

"I'm not suggesting you would encourage such a thing, but children do tend to reflect their surroundings regardless of some of the parent's best efforts. It's true of any age actually, now that I think of it. It wasn't even a full winter in this kingdom before you started adopting such informal posture when you sit, sprawling all over furniture like an over-fed cat. It was as though a lifetime of teaching suddenly counted for nothing once you left home," she countered disapprovingly, missing the eye roll from her husband next to her.

Sarah noticed the very slight shift Jareth made to sit up just a little straighter in his chair, dabbing at his lips with his napkin nonchalantly like he couldn't care what his mother thought despite his straightening up.

"What she's trying to tiptoe around…" Hamold drawled as he placed his own napkin upon his finished plate and picked up his goblet, swishing it around expertly before taking a dramatic little sip, ignoring the extremely pointed look Kaleen was giving him, "Is suggesting that the children move into the Devine Castle for their schooling and stay indefinitely."

Whatever buzz Sarah may have been feeling left her as though she had been slapped and Ishapelle's hand was instantly over hers on the table, as if holding her in place simply by her hand. Before Sarah could react Kaleen had turned to Hamold, the picture of exasperation on her face. He simply raised an eyebrow at her in an arrogant arch that reminded Sarah so much of Jareth it made her stomach turn and he took another sip of his wine.

Sarah looked over to Jareth, who had yet to react at all. Nothing about him was any different from how he had been seconds before, looking as relaxed as ever as he slid his napkin over his plate and leaned back in his chair, obviously no longer concerned with his posture as he surveyed his mother as if she had simply asked him if he liked her dress. "Oh?" was all he uttered.

Sarah's jaw clamped at his reaction, or rather total lack thereof, as she tried her damnedest to restrain her own boiling reactions. ' _Oh'_ , that was really all he could say was ' _oh'_ ; where the hell was the ' _fuck no'_ that she so desperately wished he would spew at his mother at such a thought. It was certainly the very first thought that had entered her mind. Even if you over-looked the absurdity of taking Toby and Mavias out of the Labyrinth, she still couldn't even begin to stomach the very idea of them being brought up someplace like the Devine Castle under the immediate care of Jareth's parents. It was very clear how they would be brought up just based off the two examples that graced the room at that very moment with their presence.

Kaleen turned back to her son with a sigh. "Well no sense in dancing around any longer I suppose. I would just like you to very much consider the option is all. After all, the Devine Castle is a pinnacle of class and breeding and I don't have to explain to you the benefits both children would receive from being brought up in such a place, surrounded by their own kind rather than goblins and elves and hum-" Kaleen snapped her lips shut but not before Sarah heard enough to make her cheeks burn. She couldn't think of anything to do but stare down at her plate in front of her in humiliation.

Kaleen had the decency to seem embarrassed herself, clearing her throat. "That came out wrong, for I'm not insulting any of the other races mind you, but merely trying to point out the benefits the children would have in being surrounded by their own kind. After all, if he is to grow being a fae prince than Little Jareth really should know the fae he will be dealing with. Mavias too. Besides, I fear you may have a difficult time finding a teacher of substance that would be willing to teach out here in the castle beyond the goblin city." she added, her lip curling slightly as she regarded a stain on the wall behind Ishapelle's head.

Hamold smirked and took another drink. "Keep talking Kaleen, you are doing so well," he taunted.

Kaleen snapped another heated look to her husband. They had been at ends with each other all night, Sarah wondered if perhaps this was why. "As though you disagree with me," she said with a humph, taking another drink of her own wine; at the moment it was the only remaining thing at the table anyone seemed to have any interest in. "It would not hurt for you to voice your support in this."

"He will not agree anyway. I told you not to bring it up tonight," Hamold drawled with a shrug.

Sarah looked over to Jareth, wanting him to end this now by just voicing his rejection of their suggestion. Instead he simply watched his parents little back and forth, seeming rather used to it.

"I wasn't the one who really brought it up now was I?" Kaleen pointed out.

Hamold narrowed his eyes on her and opened his mouth to retort, but Sarah jumped in, thinking if Jareth wasn't going to put a stop to this conversation she could try. Surely as their adoptive mother she had _some_ say over the children. "Dr. John Dee could tutor them," she piped up, claiming the attention of everyone in the room. For the first time Jareth looked less bored and his gaze was focused on her now, his lips pursed slightly as though the only thought on his mind was 'what do you think you are doing?!' as he stared her down. She made herself ignore him, however, Ishapelle and his parents watching her with utter surprise. "He may be human but he is extremely smart and he has never found it a problem to visit the kingdom in the past. The children know him, and get along with him." For thinking it up on the spot, the more she talked about it the more she actually favored her idea; she should have thought of it before. "I know he's not a fae, but he respects the culture and has a vast curiosity towards it. I'm sure he'd be thrilled to do it."

There was a very pregnant pause at the table, during which Kaleen and Hamold exchanged matching looks of disapproval. Sarah couldn't stop herself from frowning. Why should they disapprove about her idea?

"Obviously there is much to discuss before any decisions can be made," Jareth broke in finally, standing up from the table. "Certainly none can be made tonight. I suggest we move to one of the sitting rooms."

Hamold stood up from his seat too and the rest followed suit, Mavid and Erib moving over to open the doors for them to exit. Hamold spoke up before anyone could make a move towards them, however. "It has been a long enough night already I believe," he drawled. "Kaleen, Erib, and I will journey back now."

Jareth seemed unsurprised by this and simply nodded his head in agreement. "You must visit again soon," he muttered off out of reflex. "I'll see you out. Say 'good night' Sarah," he beckoned, casting her a warning look once his father's back was turned.

Sarah had hardly planned on starting any arguments that would prolong his parent's stay, biting down on the inside of her cheek to keep a placid look on her face as Kaleen moved over to her and placed a light kiss on her cheek, quickly moving away again. Hamold simply stood next to Jareth and Sarah tried to convince herself that she had simply seen something interesting on the floor in front of her as she bowed. It was worth it only if he left right after. Her complacency paid off and by the time she was straightening up Jareth was already leading his parents out of the room. It was barely a moment after the doors had closed behind them that the three remaining in the room let out a collective sigh.

"God they're irritating!" Sarah huffed, unable to help herself.

Ishapelle pursed her lips in disapproval for almost a full second before they spread out into an agreeing smile and she even went so far as to giggle.

"I'll escort you both to your rooms since Jareth is occupied," Mavid informed them.

X

Sarah couldn't help but feel pleased despite the horrible events of the day. Ishapelle had already helped her change into her nightgown and she had unlaced Ishapelle's bodice and corset so she could be more comfortable as well. In light of the circumstances, she had missed the female's company more than she had previously realized as they both sat on opposite ends of Sarah's bed, facing each other with their legs curled up in front of them in a fashion Sarah hadn't been able to engage in since long before she had come to the Labyrinth as they rehashed the day together.

"I just hate the thought of him being in pain, you know?" Sarah sighed, her heart feeling tugged on as she hugged her knees to her. "It was so much harder to watch than I ever thought it would be, and I had thought it would be impossible. I actually felt faint when Jareth… well you know, you were the one holding me up."

"It's indeed very hard, but he will be a lot safer now for it. Just wait, Mavias will be fully healed and bouncing all over by the time of my wedding," she smiled encouragingly.

Sarah nodded her head to show she understood, even though it did little to console her. "Maybe I should check on him again," Sarah worried out loud to herself.

"I promise you he is fine," Ishapelle insisted, "We should talk about something else."

"When do you have to go?"

"Tomorrow morning. I would stay longer but I have a lot going on at home with all that is happening."

Sarah tried to hide her disappointment but there was little point in it as she was sure everything about her was radiating her sadness right now. "When is your wedding anyway?"

"Less than sixty nights from now. Once marriages are agreed on there's usually very little time before the wedding takes place. A part of me wishes it were many winters from now, and then there is another part of me that wishes it were tomorrow just so I may be done with it."

Sarah wasn't sorry that she hadn't gotten a proper wedding with Jareth. She would have never been able to stand it. Not that it was any easier to stand that he had tricked her. She quickly and automatically tried to think of anything else, as she had become used to doing whenever she thought back to those first few nights. It was easier not to remember them.

"Will you be living with him afterwards?"

Ishapelle nodded her head again. "Torik and I both will."

Sarah dropped her head and nodded so that Ishapelle wouldn't see her wince at the mention of Torik. She couldn't imagine how he was dealing with this. He adored Ishapelle. Sarah could barely stand Jareth but the thought of being told to stand by while he coupled with someone else before her… that was beyond cold to her.

When the door to her room opened she jumped in momentary fright and Ishapelle scrambled to tuck her dress in closer to herself to make up for the fact that the back of her dress and corset were unlaced. Jareth paused in the doorway, obviously a little surprised that Ishapelle was still there, before giving his cousin a respectful nod of his head.

"I thank you again for your help today, Ishapelle."

Still holding her dress together behind her back she returned his nod with a half-bow.

"I wish to speak to my wife," Jareth informed her, stepping out of the doorway to further his point that it was time for her to go.

Sarah could only hide so much of the disappointment from her face. Obviously he was far from being all smiles so she could only guess that the talk he wanted to have wasn't going to be one of her fondest memories. Ishapelle gave her a final hug before getting up from the bed and slinking past Jareth and out of the room, still holding her dress shut behind her. Jareth closed the door and wasted no time in turning to Sarah, ready to get straight to business.

"I wish you hadn't said anything to my parents during dinner."

Even though he was approaching this calmly so far, Sarah's heart rate went up at the reminder of the idiotic idea his parents had of the boys moving in with them for schooling. She tried to fight down her initial instinct to get defensive by taking a deep breath before speaking, but Jareth beat her to it, moving over to take Ishapelle's spot on the bed across from her. "It was merely a suggestion during diner, but your response has made them rather nervous."

"Well your lack of response was making me nervous," Sarah defended, crossing her arms over her chest.

Jareth bristled a bit at her behavior and furrowed his brows at her. "We can either argue about this or talk about this Sarah. It's up to you."

To say she was surprised would have been an understatement. Was he actually willing to treat her like an adult this time? She found it hard to believe that he was willing to have an actual conversation with her that he wasn't dictating. If that was indeed what he was offering, however, she decided that she would be willing to take him up on it. She had to ask the question burning on her lips first and foremost though. "Do you think it's a good idea to send the boys to the Devine Castle for their education?"

"Sarah no decisions are being made tonight."

That wasn't the answer she had been hoping for and the dread must have shown through on her face like a beacon because Jareth moved in closer, closing the gap between them so he could sit next to her. It would have seemed very tender of him when he reached over and took her hand in his if Sarah hadn't been partially convinced that maybe he had done so just to insure that she couldn't try to strike him.

Not that that had ever done her a whole lot of good in the past.

"This is an important decision to be made. Of course I don't wish to be separate from the children either. It's just that a subject like this warrants every option being weighed. There are pros and cons to both sides. In the end what is important is what is most beneficial for Toby and Mavias."

The more he went on the further away from him Sarah wished she could get. The tone of his voice was imploring—like he was trying to convince her of something she wouldn't agree with—and despite her best efforts it was causing her to feel extremely defensive. Her chest and arms tingled as though they were gearing up for an actual fight or something. As far as his argument was concerned it only added to her bitterness. The whole reason she had been brought here was for the benefit of Toby. Jareth obviously believed that there was no wrong that could be committed for the sake of his son. Even after all they had been through.

Whether he felt love for her or not, he would always put Toby's needs first and foremost above all else. Sarah knew that Jareth was right when he claimed that there was no finer mother for him because she felt the same; that Toby was far more important than anything she wanted or needed. It was what she felt kept Jareth and herself trapped in this stalemate, that although they were completely incompatible for each other they would still try to cooperate when they could for Toby's sake, and now for Mavias too.

But if Toby was going to be sent away, even for just a little bit of the time… where would that leave her? There would be no point in having brought her here, in being kept here. If he and Mavias were to go to the Devine Castle she felt there would be no stopping them from growing up to be the same kind of males that their fathers had grown into. It was her biggest fear and she currently had Jareth cuddling up to her and telling her that it was an option.

How was it even an option?! It certainly didn't sound like one to her.

Since she was sure that none of these thoughts were anything Jareth would be willing to listen too, much less try to understand, she pressed her lips together to keep them in and her arms wrapped around herself in a subconscious effort of self-comfort. Jareth leaned in closer and placed a kiss to her cheek. She sat there unresisting, but she only wished he would leave her alone. She didn't want him around after the topic of sending Toby away had been brought up by him.

Sensing her coldness towards him, Jareth let out a sigh and dropped his forehead to her shoulder in weariness. "You were well-behaved today, considering," he acknowledged. "If it helps put you to ease, I confess that I will be trying hard to first and foremost find an acceptable fae tutor willing to come here for the boys."

Sarah looked him in the eyes then, willing him to keep his word on that. She was surprised to see that something about Jareth's face seemed older-looking. She didn't know if it was the exhausted look in his eyes or the tension in his body left over from the day's events, but he seemed worn out. In a way it was both gratifying and comforting to know that it had taken a toll on him. Maybe she was bad for being happy that he was even just a little bit miserable looking, but she didn't think so. "Thank you, Jareth," she told him, since he seemed to be waiting for that response.

He gave her a quick kiss on the lips, which she made herself return because she found that the less she fought the sooner this conversation would be over and she could go to bed, and ran one hand down her long strands of hair once more before getting up from her bed and heading into his own room, obviously feeling too tired for her company tonight. Fine with her.

X

Sarah stood by Jareth's side lined up amongst the many other fae that were present to bear witness to Ishapelle's marriage to Bastile. It had been coming up for a while and now it was finally here. Sarah had secretly been looking forward to this for what seemed like an eternity, although it had been on schedule as Ishapelle had said. Little had changed back at the castle during that time, but what had changed hadn't seemed for the better thus far; possibly why she had been looking forward to this. She had needed out of there, out of the routine they had been falling into, even if it was just for a night or so.

While there was the occasional visit from Dee to keep her occupied and the boys were growing beautifully (Mavias already fully healed from his branding), her days had been steadily becoming more and more monotonous. She was alone a lot more of the time now, for Jareth had found a tutor whom he had deemed suitable, and his parents had even grudgingly agreed.

Sarah couldn't stand the fae.

Some haughty, pious male who was so bent on fae tradition that he regarded anything that he deemed a 'modern' idea as one would regard a rat in the kitchen. When he had first set eyes on Sarah, and every time since then the buzzard had regarded her with a tight-lipped expression full of judgment as though he had just been introduced to the family pet and asked to treat it just like a person. It had been clear right away that they wouldn't get along. Jareth had insisted that his traditional ways were the only reason that his parents had accepted the arrangement and that it wouldn't hurt the boys to grow with a healthy sense of tradition to their culture.

That had turned into an argument that Sarah rather wanted to forget, with her eventually insisting that the boys would grow up backwards and just as barbaric as the rest of the fae. Jareth hadn't taken to being insinuated as backwards and barbaric well, backhanding her across the face (which she felt only furthered her point) and storming out of the room.

That she had been able to handle; the part of the memory that stung her was later that night when he had made her apologize. Not to him, which would have been easy enough since she felt like she was always having to apologize to Jareth, but he had made her apologize during supper to the entire table. Mavias may not have fully understood, but Toby seemed to understand that she was making an apology for something at least and she hadn't been able to look at either Mavid or that pious tutor the whole time that she was admitting (under Jareth's instruction) that she had earlier insulted their culture because she was naïve and that she was sorry for it.

Even here at the wedding ceremony, months after it had happened and miles away from the boys and Yaxly, the tutor, who were all back at the castle beyond the goblin city, it still burned on her ego and her pride like a wound.

"Sarah, be more alert," Jareth hissed at her, his calm face and demeanor belying the irritation he felt with her currently. "Mavid was speaking to you."

"I'm sorry," she whispered, not meaning it as she looked back to Mavid, who flanked her other side.

"The couple approaching are wealthy landowners from the Weeping Hills, Korner and Layala. They are not royalty in any way so don't bow to them. You needn't try to impress them."

The wedding hadn't started yet, and wouldn't for a few moments still. Right now everyone was just sort of mingling. With Mavid next to her doing his trick of whispering hints to her on anyone approaching them and coaching her through it she was actually able to concentrate on other things more, which she was happy to do. As she nodded her head in acceptance as the other couple bowed to both her and Jareth she took another sweeping look at the crowd around her. There was much to be seen at a fae wedding it seemed—from the different races all brought together and dressed head to toe in white (as was apparently custom), to the marvelous decorations such as the ceiling made of red roses that would once in a while drop petals down onto the white-clad guests. Sarah had no idea how it was managed since the wedding was held outside and there was nothing holding it up as far as she could see. Or the large tree growing in the center of everything with its branches bare except for the white flowers blooming on it where apparently Ishapelle and her groom would stand underneath it to join in marriage. According to Jareth there would even be a griffin that Ishapelle and her groom would ride up to the tree on. Apparently only the most well-off families ever did that.

Thus far Sarah had not seen even a glimpse of Ishapelle or Torik. While she knew she wouldn't until the ceremony started, it didn't stop her from looking just the same.

Mavid was suddenly in her ear again and she realized the couple were now walking away from them. "Look sharp and bow low."

Sarah forced a fake smile to her face at the sight of Jareth's mother and father approaching them and dropped with Jareth and Mavid into a bow. She hadn't seen either of them since the night of Mavias's branding. Like everyone else, they were also formally dressed in all white. Although it was a rather crowded event, everyone seemed able to keep a very respectful distance from them. They looked utterly regal and utterly bored as they greeted them.

"How are you enjoying the wedding thus far?" Kaleen inquired of Sarah, seeming as interested in the prospect of conversation as Sarah was.

"The least they could have done was open the bar prior to the wedding," Hamold commented, looking around as if searching for a drink. "This is just a bunch of fae standing around waiting for it to be over with."

"Hamold," Kaleen scolded.

He turned to her with challenging eyes. "I'm only going to say that if you're going to pump atrocious amounts of wealth into a wedding you might as well make it enjoyable for the guests you're trying so hard to impress. When Jareth's joining to Sarah was celebrated we did it right. Wine always within reach."

"The drinks will be passed after the ceremony," Jareth sighed, obviously wishing for his parents to be silent on the matter.

Sarah couldn't really think of a time she had been around them that they weren't fighting. She had seen times in Kaleen's memories, but that was it. She looked over to Jareth, whom Toby already looked so much the spitting image of. Would he one day be standing there while she and Jareth constantly fought?

The thought turned her stomach and she suddenly wanted to get away. She couldn't though; she was trapped there along with every other guest in attendance.

"They should have started by now," Kaleen acknowledged. "A late wedding isn't a good way to start a marriage."

Sarah held back a snort of laughter at the thought that it had to be a much better sign than the start of her own marriage. She had never once attended a wedding that had started on time.

As long as they were running late though… Sarah turned to Jareth, "Before they start can I go to the bathroom quickly?"

"Can you or _may_ you?" Hamold piped in, correcting her grammar and causing a blush to form on her cheeks. Jareth cast him a look that he ignored, keeping his hard eyes on Sarah until she finally responded. "May I go to the restroom?" she asked stiffly.

Jareth simply nodded his head and ordered Mavid to escort her, turning unhappily back to his parents. Despite constantly ordering her about, he never seemed to take kindly to it when others thought they could do the same. He was even possessive in controlling her it seemed.

Mavid led Sarah away from the group, much to her happiness, and through the crowd to a large building separate from the main house where the wedding party was kept while they got ready.

The inside was simpler than she was used to by now, but still finely decorated in pinks and creams and every now and then someone would run out of one room and down the hall to another looking frazzled and rushed. It reminded her very much of how these things went at home, actually. Mavid was hardly able to stop one of the rushing passers-by and get directions to the nearest restroom before the servant rushed off.

As Mavid led her down the hall she couldn't help but hope to see Ishapelle, even just a glimpse. She knew it was highly unlikely though, since she was probably way too busy getting ready.

"Is there actually going to be a griffin?" she asked Mavid, the beginnings of excitement edging into her tone.

He nodded his head. "Indeed."

"Are they dangerous?"

He let out a snort of laughter. "Only if you have gills. They're only carnivorous with fish."

"Are they big? If Ishapelle and her husband are both going to ride one it must be the size of a horse or something."

"Slightly smaller; it likely won't be nearly as impressive as your think it will be. The wings are probably the most impressive thing about them because of their span, but those will be strapped down during the ceremony. Other than that it's just the body of a lion and head of an eagle," he shrugged, obviously viewing it as a ho-hum conversation. "Make sure you hurry," he reminded her, gesturing to a door that had to be the bathroom.

Sarah rolled her eyes and ignored his impatience, figuring she wouldn't let him get to her nearly so easily. She went into the restroom and stopped halfway in the door when she saw that there was a boot laying on the red bathroom floor in front of her. While that alone was very odd, she became even more confused when she took in the fact that it was connected to a leg, her eyes traveling over the person that was sprawling out on the floor of the bathroom in front of her on their stomach. Her eyes took in the light brown hair and pale skin and her heartbeat sped up before she could even understand why it would do such a thing. The face was turned toward the wall away from her but she could just barely make out the delicate bone structure of the face that belonged to Torik. She stepped forward without thinking to see what he was possibly doing when she slipped and had to catch herself on the door handle, looking down at her foot to see that the floor was not in fact naturally red, but was covered in so much blood that at first she hadn't noticed the majority of it was in fact white. She stared down at the slip-mark she had made in the blood as a scream bubbled up from her chest and burst from her mouth at such a volume that it even startled herself and her heartbeat hammered in her ears as Mavid grabbed her and wretched her out of the room as fast as he could, the door swinging closed to once more conceal what was inside of it.

The difference was that now there was half a foot-print's worth of red staining the carpet wherever Sarah had stepped down when Mavid had pulled her back and on further till they were halfway down the hall and she lost her footing altogether, sinking down to the ground against the wall and closing her eyes tight, unable to un-see what she had just seen. She only then started to comprehend that she was still shouting, now at Mavid. "Go back! That was Torik; he's hurt! You have to help him! Go back!"

"What's going on out here?" a deep male voice she didn't know demanded indignantly from somewhere behind Sarah's shoulder.

"He needs help!" she screamed again, fighting against Mavid when he held down on her shoulders to keep her from getting up herself.

"In there!" he shouted at the unknown male, releasing her just long enough to point back towards the door.

As the male ran past them Mavid's blue eyes locked on Sarah's and they were so grave and serious that Sarah's immediate impulse was to run from him. To get away before he could tell her what she didn't want to hear. "Listen to me Sarah; there's nothing that can help him—"

She couldn't run away with him holding her in place cornered between the wall and the floor, so she reached up and slammed her hands over her ears and squeezed her eyes shut on reflex as her head pounded and her face grew hot. "No!" she screamed, the sight refusing to leave her mind's eye.

"Oh my Gods, Torik!" the male exclaimed from down the hall.

Sarah was vaguely aware of a few more people running by and Mavid shouting for one of them to stop and come back. Her blood froze in her veins when she heard one of them let out an ear-shattering scream because she recognized the voice behind it and she opened her eyes and looked just in time to see that one of the ones who had run down to the bathroom had been Ishapelle, covered head to toe in an impressive-looking white dress that looked like it was made almost entirely out of white feathers, reminding Sarah of a dove. She watched, just as frozen as everyone else as Ishapelle's small frame shoved its way through the others and into the bathroom. She could just see the skirt of the dress as Ishapelle dropped down next to Torik inside the room as her screams turned to sobs.

X

Jareth didn't know what to do for once. He felt powerless and unable to do anything for his wife, who was currently curled up in his lap, sobbing very softly onto his shoulder like a little girl as he rocked her back and forth. Her arms were wrapped around his chest and her legs were wrapped around his waist, trapping him as he tried his best to offer her comfort after what had happened just hours before.

He wished like mad that she hadn't had to see that. That she hadn't been the one to find the boy. He even wished that the boy hadn't made such a traumatizing mess out of the whole thing, slicing both wrists wide open so that blood had gotten everywhere.

What a mess it was, too.

Someone had come running out of the blasted gatehouse screaming that there had been a murder or something inside one of the bathrooms. Jareth could still remember the instant cold feeling that had gripped his heart and as he and everyone else started rushing to get inside to see. Mavid had pushed his way out through the crowd, Sarah gripped in one arm. The relief had been instant and phenomenal for Jareth as they moved to the side of the crowd to avoid being trampled and he pulled her into his arms, kissing her lips and not caring in the least that they were completely passive. Her face had been stained with tears but she was no longer crying. Mavid had whispered to him that Ishapelle's pet, Torik, had taken his own life in the bathroom, and that Sarah had been the one to find him. Sarah seemed to be in shock, unmoving and unspeaking as she just stood there and stared at the ground in front of her, her arms wrapped protectively around herself.

After that there had been a lot of confusion as things tried to get sorted out. The guests were slowly but surely removed from the gatehouse and so too were the wedding party. Grim Reapers were brought in and they removed the body through the back so that none of the guests would see.

When Ishapelle's father and soon-to-be husband finally appeared and informed everyone that despite the delay the wedding would go forward as planned it had been no great surprise to anyone—except perhaps Sarah—since the death of a pet (however upsetting) was not reason enough to completely stop a wedding of two noble families. It would no doubt be a much more somber occasion, and they might even ask for a moment of sympathy for the bride at the end of the event, but it had to continue none the less.

With Sarah's state there had been no thought of staying in Jareth's mind, however. He and Mavid had brought her home and she continued to say nothing the whole way. When they arrived at the castle Jareth had instructed Mavid to check up on the tutor and Aboris, who had been watching the boys in their absence. Jareth had started to lead Sarah up to their rooms so that she could rest, but had only gone a step when he saw the white shoe that Sarah was wearing had some blood on it.

She had followed his eyes and the second she had seen her shoe it was as though the shock had been snapped out of her and she had started sobbing so hard that he had had no choice but to scoop her up and carry her up to his room, where he promptly removed both her shoes and unlaced her dress and corset so that she could cry without threat of passing out or suffocating. Then while he had sat down on the edge of the bed with her she had wrapped herself around him and there they had stayed for a very long time. Sarah was just finally starting to calm down as she sniffled into his neck and he hummed to her and stroked her hair.

He didn't know what to say to her. He therefore chose the smartest path that he could see and said nothing, waiting for her to speak first. At this moment, he was just waiting for her to stop crying.

After she finally did run out of tears, she still said nothing, just held onto him as he continued to rock with her.

It was a while after that that she finally slowly unwrapped herself from him, not meeting his eyes as she pulled away and got up from the bed. He watched her with patience as she ventured into the bathroom, obviously not having gone earlier, and shut the door behind herself so that there was just a crack left open. Not enough for him to see in, but just enough so that the door wasn't really shut.

Jareth took the opportunity to get up and walk around the room a little, stretching his stiff legs and back. While to him the death of Torik was unpleasant, it was equivalent to that of the loss of one of his friend's Pegasus ponies or perhaps a slightly more treasured pet. Knowing that Sarah was taking it much harsher than that, and perhaps even understanding slightly why she was, Jareth would make no such comment to her on his view of the events. Mostly he just felt relief that she had been alright.

The bathroom door opened back up and he turned to it, looking Sarah over as she rubbed at her tears to make sure she was mostly alright. She stood in the doorway for a moment, seeming unsure what to do with herself now.

"Sarah?" Jareth inquired, breaking his own resolution to let her be the one to speak first.

She finally looked up at him, but her eyes almost immediately snapped back down to the ground. "How could they just… go on with the wedding?" she asked in a shaky voice, as though she were on the verge of tears all over again. "Ish- Ishapelle had told me that he was upset that she was getting married but I never thought… she never said…" her voice cracked and Jareth went over to her, taking her softly by the hand and ushering her over to the bed where he had every intention of lying her down before she managed to work herself up all over again. The tears were already slipping down once more from her eyes.

She didn't fight him in the least, moving automatically on his instruction as though she weren't even aware of what she was doing as he undressed her and laid her down. "God, poor Torik, he must have felt so alone with her getting married," she sniffed, and that was all it took for her to start crying all over again as Jareth pulled the covers up around her, tucking her in without a word. What she needed was rest and to try to forget about the day. Again he wished that she hadn't been the one to discover the body. That was probably the hardest part about the whole thing for her.

Once she was properly settled he left her be to sleep, closing the door softly behind him. Out in the hall he pinched the bridge of his nose and let out a long and slow sigh in frustration that nothing could just ever go right. It was like a curse.

He walked down the hall, thinking he might go find Mavid or the boys. As he passed a window, however, he looked out at the long expanse of kingdom that was all his. His territory, his responsibility, his property.

He suddenly felt overcome with a need to go out and feel like he was a part of it, throwing open the pane and climbing onto the ledge. He didn't think twice about it when he leapt out as far as his legs could propel him, feeling his size change and his skin tingle as feathers sprung out from every inch of him as he turned into his owl form. The chilling wind rushed over him and he opened up his wings and tucked up his legs, gliding on the air currents over the Goblin City and beyond the Goblin Gate and through the Land of Waste till he reached the forest, dropping down to fly between the trees and branches with agility and grace.

It was a wondrous stress reliever for him to fly, and thanks to the cold seasons he hadn't had the opportunity. The colder it was the thinner the air and the harder it was for flying. It was starting to warm up again, however, and so he indulged—zigzagging amongst the tree trunks and pivoting through the brush till he just about exhausted himself. When his keen eyes spied movement below in the form of a leaf-sprite he dove down, following an animal instinct to hunt and kill. The sprite never even saw him coming, suddenly finding herself trapped between the ground and one of Jareth's talon-clad feet. She started screaming hysterically, a noise that sounded little more shrill than a small whistle and wretched violently around in an attempt to get loose. It was a hopeless endeavor though. Jareth tilted his head so that he could watch for a moment. The sound of a bush rustling very close by grabbed his attention though and he released the sprite, taking flight soon enough that he just missed being pounced on by a manticore by mere inches. The man-like face let out a lion's roar as he swiped at the air below Jareth with his large cat paws, it's scorpion tail swishing back and forth like it was just aching to sting.

Out here the laws of the food chain applied to everyone. If Jareth were to turn from his owl form into his fae body he would be able to make short work of the creature with his magic if he so wished. He flew on without spite, moving up closer to the tops of the trees where he would be a little safer. He took another lap in an effort to wear himself out and release the rest of the tension he had been holding onto for so long before returning home. He was surprised when he flew up to the window that he had leapt out of to see that Sarah was standing there, obviously waiting for him. She opened the window up for him without a word when he neared and he flew through it and past her, landing with grace on the stone ground and returning to his original form as she closed the window back up. She wasn't dressed, even though she was out in the hall, but she had the top cover from his bed wrapped all around her, trailing behind her in the hall as there was far too much material for her. She didn't even look at him when he turned to face her, staring blankly at the floor between them.

"What are you doing out of bed?" he questioned, perhaps a bit too harshly since she took half a step back at his tone.

"I was waiting for you to get back," she replied automatically, obviously still in shock. Although perhaps at this point she was just too worn out from the emotional day she had had to express any more.

"I'm back now," he stated, placing his hand behind her back to lead her back to the bedroom. She followed along, the blanket still dragging behind her.

"Where are Toby and Mavias? They weren't in the nursery."

"No, they are still in lessons with Yaxly," Jareth reminded her. It didn't go unnoticed when she mustered up the strength to sneer at the mere mention of the fae tutor's name. "Why do you want to see them right now anyway?" Jareth asked, guiding her back over to the bed.

"I was just going to check on them." She stopped in front of the bed and turned back to him, her eyes locking with his and he almost wanted to flinch from how tired she looked. She looked so unlike her usual self, more haunted and hallow. "Jareth, is there some way I can speak to Ishapelle? I want to make sure she's alright."

"Sarah right now what you need is rest. Ishapelle is no doubt starting her honeymoon at this very moment."

Anger seeped into the corners of her face but for the most part her voice remained flat. "Somehow I doubt she's interested in it after what happened…" She held her ground when Jareth motioned for her to climb in bed. "I don't want to go to sleep right now," she insisted. "I want to talk to Ishapelle. She's been so good about being there for me when I need her and I'm sure what she needs right now is a friend, not a _honeymoon_ ," she muttered bitterly.

"I have no way of contacting her directly. If I send out correspondence at this moment it would still take time for a response so whether you sleep or not will not change that," he reasoned, "If you wish I can have Aboris bring you something to help you sleep."

Sarah's expression turned even more bitter as she crossed her arms and sat down on the side of the bed. "No thank you," she bit out tightly.

Jareth felt a pang of bitterness himself. "Why are you angry with me now?" he demanded venomously. It wasn't fair that she should be angry with him when he had done nothing but try to help her.

"I don't want drugs," Sarah hissed back, "I want to talk to Ishapelle about Torik. I want to help her through this."

"She has a husband for that now," he pointed out.

"Some help!" Sarah rebutted, her voice rising to the verge of shouting.

She wasn't being sensible about this, and Jareth felt his own anger coil as she practically shouted at him. "I think you want to talk to her so badly just so that she can help _you_ through this, precious," he scoffed, preparing for another fight between them.

Shock and outrage instantly took over Sarah's features and for a moment she only stood there, glaring at him in disbelief. It was almost instantaneous when her eyes suddenly glossed over and she lowered her head to hide from him, suddenly reaching out to shove him away from her as a sob escaped her. Jareth was caught off guard by it and actually stumbled back, tripping over his own heels but managing to catch himself on a nightstand before he could fall.

"You're such a jerk!" she shouted, running past him with the blanket still held around her in a death-grip. She might have been aiming for her own door to her room, but for whatever reason ran into the bathroom instead in her haste, slamming the door shut behind her all the same.

What he had said had obviously hurt her and she had chosen to run off to lick her wounds rather than stay and admit to herself that what he said had been true. She was too prideful to acknowledge that she was also a little bit selfish.

A part of Jareth wanted to just leave her be, but there was a more prominent part of him that did not take kindly to being yelled at and shoved when he had been trying to get her to calm down and get some rest. He hesitated only a second before purposefully making his way after her to the bathroom. That door had no locks but that wouldn't have stopped him anyway from barging into the stately bathroom. Sarah had been standing halfway across the room with her back to him when the door opening had caused her to jump and she spun around to face him. There was a fear and uncertainty in her eyes but she held her scowl firm, shoving away a rogue tear from slipping down her cheek.

"What?" she snapped, taking a step back from him as she did so.

"You will curb your tone when addressing me," Jareth snapped right back, "You are distraught and that is understandable…" he didn't say 'given the self-mutilated body you discovered today' out loud. "But you have no right to take it out on me. I have done nothing to earn your malice by seeing that you are comfortable and allowed to rest so that you may recover and try to forget about all that happened today. This is not my fault, Sarah." He took another step towards her, but she took several more back from him.

"This _**is**_ all your fault!" Sarah caterwauled, more tears slipping through her scowl. Even from the distance she held Jareth could see her body was shaking from underneath her blanket.

Jareth was shocked by this. "You are blaming me for that human boy stupidly killing himself? I suppose I cut his veins myself when I was not paying attention, is that it?" he growled, advancing on her again.

Sarah kept the distance as best she could by backing around the sunken tub, trying to keep it between them. "You're the one who brought me here!"

If he had been in reach he would have struck her across the mouth for insisting on re-hashing this argument once more. He stopped chasing her around the tub and she stopped so she wouldn't end up closer to him. "Sarah get over here right now," he commanded, losing his patience with her. He snapped his fingers at her and pointed stiffly to the spot right next to him.

She only glared back at him and for some reason Loki's voice ran through the back of Jareth's mind, calling her a king again. Sod him! A kingdom couldn't stand with two kings ruling over it. Jareth refused to back away from his birthright for the sake of some spoiled human girl that couldn't accept kindness when it was shown to her. She owed him an apology but she continued to stand there and glare at him.

"I'm not your dog." she hissed, wrapping the blankets around her just a little tighter.

That was obvious to Jareth already, for even a bitch knew to come when she was called. His anger was growing at a dangerous rate and he had lost much of the self-control already that kept him from lashing out. Even now his hand was twitching for the feel of his riding crop. He probably needed to calm down, but his attention was too focused on Sarah and her behavior was nothing but a catalyst at the moment. Jareth straightened his back and made one last attempt to curb his temper. He fought to keep his voice level though it was tight, "No, you are my wife. Right now you are not treating me like your husband. You are acting as though I am your enemy. I am simply looking out for your best interests. You are over-tired and distraught and not thinking clearly about this. Some sleep will do you well."

She didn't say anything back, just continued to stand there tensely and watched for him to make a move so that she would be ready to flee again.

Jareth took another breath to try to calm himself more before continuing. "If you apologize for your cruel actions towards me and go back to bed I will put all of this behind us. Otherwise there will be consequences."

"You don't have my 'best interests in mind'. You never have. You have _your_ best interests in mind and if you think anything otherwise than you're lying to yourself even more than you're lying to me! If that was true you would have let me go. You would have let Carrie go. You would have let Toby go. You would have left all of us alone!" she shouted, her whole body trembling with her anger and exhaustion.

Jareth immediately went after her and she started reeling backwards like her life depended on it.

The sheet she was wrapped in fell in the way of her heels and she stumbled back over it, crashing to the stone ground with a scream. Jareth conjured a crystal and threw it at her now exposed right ankle. She was so busy trying to get herself sorted out from the blanket that she hadn't noticed the cuff that had shackled her ankle nor the chain that led from it to the foot post of the bed in the other room. It was the same one that had confined her to bed after she had tried to poison his food and escape the last time. Sarah noticed it though when the chain magically began to shorten, pulling her ankle with it as the space between her and the bed lessened.

She reached down for the shackle, hoping to release herself no doubt. Upon seeing the familiar cuff and chain she let out another cry of outrage, pulling her leg against it even though it did no good and as she was forced to crawl backwards with it to keep from simply being dragged out of the bathroom and across the bedroom floor. The whole time she fought between resisting it and trying not to damage her leg or ankle as Jareth simply strolled past her and over to the bed, waiting for her and watching her as the chain continued to shorten. It stopped when there was only a single link left between her ankle and the top of the footboard, holding her right leg up two feet from the ground.

She was completely indignant and exposed in her naked state, unable to hide anything from Jareth's gaze and she glared up at him with tears streaming down her red face. "You're a monster!" she screamed at him, her voice full of conviction.

Jareth held back the urge to strike her and instead went over to the corner of the room that the comforter had been dragged to in Sarah's struggle. He picked it up and tossed it over to her, the mass practically burying her and she shoved it off of her furiously.

"You are going to be there until you are ready to apologize," he informed her coldly, placing his hands on his hips as he towered over her. "I'll send Aboris up with something to put you to sleep. Try not to look like a whore by the time he gets here," he bit out cruelly, his eyes darting over her exposed body with her legs forcibly spread from each other.

He turned his back on her and left, slamming the door behind him.

X

Jareth had only made it a mere hallway away from Aboris's medical quarters when he heard a loud crashing sound. While that wasn't always an uncommon sound in these halls due to the goblins, the continued sounds of struggle and the sound of Aboris shouting caused him to quicken his pace.

"Please stop!" Aboris shouted, "Please!"

Jareth stopped short in the doorway when he saw Mavid had his fists balled up in the elf's shirt collars, holding him up against a medical cart whose contents had been knocked everywhere. Mavid's expression wasn't one of anger, but rather just a cold seriousness as he gave the panic-stricken elf another shove.

"What's going on here?" Jareth demanded calmly, looking over at another stand that had been knocked over in their struggle. He had never known Mavid to pick fights without reason, and although he sometimes disagreed on it being a warranted reason Jareth was curious as to what the reason behind this scenario may be.

Mavid didn't take his eyes from the taller elf as he answered. "I was in here about a headache and this elf let something very interesting slip as we were talking."

Aboris shouted, terrified as his eyes implored upon Jareth. "He just attacked me!"

"Sarah has been in here without your knowledge," Mavid insisted to Jareth, "He mentioned that he was about out of chocolate because she had eaten most of it. I have never seen him present her with any chocolate any time she's been in here and he wouldn't dare carry the stuff around these halls. It's like catnip to goblins.

Jareth knew as well as most fae that if other medicines weren't available a piece of chocolate could sooth a headache so it was in line to a conversation they would probably have. Jareth thought back to the only time Sarah had been in here without Mavid present, during her physical. She hadn't eaten any chocolate then. It did seem like an odd comment for the elf to make then. "Aboris, did you give chocolate to my wife at any time that she was in here?"

"I- yes, yes… she came in.

"When did she do this?" Jareth asked, leaning against the door frame and crossing his arms in his boredom.

"I don't remember," Aboris stated, only to scream again when Mavid gave him another shove.

"Remember." Mavid warned him.

"I… you were out… I think it was a few moons ago… that night that Loki visited. That was the night."

Jareth hardly remembered much from that night. "Why did you not report it to me?" he asked, not too concerned by her having chocolate so much as he was with the fact that Aboris hadn't reported a session to him—something he had been specifically instructed to do.

"It was nothing your majesty," Aboris insisted, sweat pooling over his forehead. "I just… she had a h-headache."

Something like uncertainty flashed over the elf's face as he spoke and Jareth picked up on the lie as quickly as Mavid did, both their attentions instantly more focused. "Is there a reason you see fit to lie to me?" Jareth questioned darkly.

"I'm not lying," the elf insisted feebly, panic on his face once more.

Mavid released his collar and grabbed the elf's wrist instead, turning his back on the male so he could hook it under his arm to keep it in place while exposing the medic's hand. He took out one of his smaller knives and Aboris went a shade of grayish white, struggling as Mavid gently passed the blade over the tip of the elf's pinky finger, releasing a thin line of blood. Aboris screamed like a banshee, making it seem far more painful than it ever could have been. "Those were two lies but I'll give you one of them," Mavid informed him calmly, looking back over his shoulder at the terrified male. "From now on, one cut per lie."

Jareth came further into the room as this was happening, closing the door behind him. Suddenly what had been a little problem had the potential to become a big problem. Failing to report a visit from Sarah was a small matter that simply needed immediate correction. Lying to cover something up from him… that was another matter entirely.

"What reason do you have to lie to me about my wife's visit, elf?" he questioned again.

Aboris's eyes darted once to the back of Mavid's neck before he practically stumbled over himself to answer. "Please your highness, I didn't do anything. I just gave her chocolate and sent her on her way. She didn't have a headache, I'm sorry I lied."

"What was she doing down here then?"

Aboris hesitated, but let out a panicked shout when Mavid tightened down on his wrist in response. "She wanted a contraceptive. I told her no. I wouldn't even have any to give her. I just gave her chocolate."

Mavid's eyes met Jareth's, trying to read what he should do from his benefactor's reaction. There was none, however, not on the surface anyway. Underneath his skin Jareth could feel the blood freeze in his veins though and his stomach filled with ice. "She asked you for a contraceptive?" His voice sounded detached, as though he were asking what tomorrow's weather would bring.

"Y-yes sire, but I turned her away."

"Had she ever asked you for any before then?" Jareth growled out, some of the ice turning to fire within him.

"No, sire."

"Has she asked you for any since?" Jareth demanded, advancing towards him.

"No, sire! I would never give her any, I swear. I know what you would do to me," Aboris insisted, unable to escape from Mavid's grip.

"I guarantee that you haven't the faintest clue what I would do to you," Jareth informed him coldly.

Aboris looked on the verge of a panic attack, clearly not sure how to respond to that.

"Have you ever hidden any other secrets from me?"

"No, sire," Aboris answered, his voice pleading.

"Don't ever think to do it again, then," Jareth warned him, his tone dark with threat. "Release him Mavid."

Mavid did so, hiding away his knife once more as Aboris pin-wheeled back against the wall behind him, holding his hand close to himself protectively. "I won't," he promised.

Jareth's mind raged with the knowledge he now held. Upstairs in his room Sarah was currently captive and waiting for Aboris to bring her a sleeping draft. The very nerve she had had to ask for something like a contraceptive…

"You do not harbor any contraceptives?" Jareth asked again, making sure.

"None," Aboris insisted.

"My wife requires a sedative. Prepare one for her."

Aboris inched around Mavid and quickly started moving around jars and containers looking for a sedative.

"How do you want to handle this?" Mavid asked, referring to Sarah's deceptiveness.

Jareth thought about it for a moment. A just punishment equal of the crime never steered him wrong before. He turned from Mavid back to the healer, who flinched under his gaze.

"If you have anything that promotes conception, lace the sedative with it. You'll start giving her this medical cocktail every five days from now on."

X

Sarah had had a hard time of it, but she had managed to calm down a little bit and pull herself from the floor onto the bed, covering herself with the comforter. She stared up at the mirror ceiling above her, watching as every now and then a tear would fall back from her eyes even though she was no longer really crying. Contemplating how much she hated being here. How much she hated Jareth.

When the bedroom door opened she paid it no mind, she had been expecting it after all.

"Your highness?" Aboris's voice inquired from near the door.

She didn't bother responding, just closed her eyes in dread of the medicine she would no doubt be forced to take in order to fall asleep.

She could hear Aboris move up to the bed beside her, and she could also hear two other pairs of footsteps near the door behind him. No doubt Jareth and Mavid. "Your highness I have a potion for you."

She finally cracked her eyes open and looked over at Aboris, who looked extremely uncomfortable as he held a cup up for her to see. "It's to help you sleep," he explained, "I— I understand you have had a rough day."

Sarah rolled her eyes and turned away from him, wishing she hadn't because when she rolled over that had made it possible for her to see Jareth and Mavid in the doorway. They both were glowering at her. She simply closed her eyes to them, wishing they would all just go away and leave her alone.

"Sarah," Jareth's sharp voice lashed at her from across the room. "Drink it."

"I'm trying to sleep," she pointed out bitterly. "Why should I drink it?"

"Your highness, this will keep you from having any nightmares," Aboris chimed in, trying again to tempt her with it.

 _My life is a nightmare_ , she thought to herself bitterly, still unwilling to cooperate.

The sound of footsteps from the door coming towards her got her to open her eyes and she lifted her head a little as Jareth advanced, all the anger from before still apparent on his face. "Never one to turn down a punishment, are you Sarah? Do as you are told or you shall receive another one."

Sarah remembered the last time she had been placed in a position like this. Just because she was now chained and confined didn't mean that Jareth could do nothing else to her. Last time he had restricted her food, had administered spankings with both his hand and his crop, and had taken her roughly again and again.

After a bit of pause, Sarah sat up from the bed, holding the blankets up to her chest. She was going to end up falling asleep one way or another. She would just as soon avoid anything else for the time being. Jareth watched her closely as Aboris carefully handed her the cup. A rebellious part of her contemplated throwing it across the room, or better yet right in Jareth's face, but a part of her still cared if she lived or not. She looked down at the light green liquid in the cup before bringing it up to her lips and drinking it down, surprised that the taste was rather decent, like spiced chicken broth or something.

No sooner had she finished it that her muscles started to relax and her head swam a little bit, her eyes feeling heavy. It had been more powerful than she had been expecting and she was just able to hand the cup back over before the urge to lay back down overtook her, her head swimming as she looked back up at the mirror above her. She looked strange in it, her limbs sluggishly moving around even though she wasn't really aware that she was moving at all. Jareth was still in her line of vision as he towered over her and she turned her head slightly to him, though it took much effort.

"Both of you leave," he commanded, staring down at her.

How weird, why would he command her to leave? Why did he think there were two of her? There was a sound like a door had been closed and she closed her eyes against the way the world spun again, opening them back up to see Jareth was starting to unfasten his shirt, his fingers ghosting over the buttons down the front.

She closed her eyes again and was out like a light.

Sarah dreamt that night. It wasn't a normal dream though—normally there were pictures in her mind when she dreamed and she could see everything as easily as though she were just standing in a room. But this time there were just flashes of images: a hand intertwined with hers against a silken sheet, lips right before they claimed her own, the outline of a body above her. The other main difference was that this was a dirty dream, one that was causing things in her to stir and she could almost swear that she felt the pleasure as though it were real as the feel of someone pounding into her faded in and out of her consciousness. There was a painful tugging on her ankle, she thought, but it stopped and she was only vaguely aware that suddenly she was now her stomach, the sheets soft on her cheek. Another bolt of pleasure shot through her and she wasn't sure why. She welcomed the feeling though, pleased when it happened again. The tugging at her ankle was happening again though, and there was a pain at her hips that was slowly building up like a pressure was being applied to them even as the jolts of pleasure continued. She wanted it to stop and continue at the same time. She let out a sigh when a rush of pleasure suddenly swept over her, making her feel warm all over and putting her deeper into her sleep.

X


	43. Chapter 43

"You are my sunshine, my only sunshine. You make me happy when skies are grey. You'll never know dear, how much I-"

"I want go outside! Mummy outside!" Toby shouted, interrupting both Sarah's singing and Mavias's lunch-time bottle as he sprung up from his stack of toys in the corner of the nursery. He ran over to her, gripping at the soft material of her yoga pants to further draw her attention to him. Mavias started to fuss, turning his head away from his bottle so he could properly do so and reaching out a hand to try to push Toby away.

"Toby don't shout. We use indoor voices remember?" she scolded him as she tried to calm Mavias down in her lap. He had grown so much in the last few months, already sitting up on his own and he could even hold onto his own bottles, although he would still drop them often. Toby reacted quickly to Mavias's weak push and placed both his hands on the sides of his own face, pulling his skin down as far as he could stretch it in order to make a face at Mavias and that was all she wrote before the babe burst into full on screams of upset.

"Toby stop that!" Sarah practically shouted, hugging the babe against her to soothe him.

"I play gob'in! Gob'ins look funny. It is the rules." he insisted, letting go of his skin at last so he looked like a normal boy again. It at least gave her a chance to calm Mavias down.

"Toby go play with your toys," she ordered, rocking Mavias still in a futile effort to comfort him.

"No." Toby countered, using his newly favored word on her. For the past week or so if he hadn't gotten his way everything out of his mouth was 'no, no, no, no!'

Sarah let out a tired sigh and leaned back against the rocking chair she sat in. She didn't really have the energy to fight him. Not that she didn't want to, but she was left in a constant state of fatigue because of those damn potions that Jareth made her drink every so often. She had been given another one just a few days before.

After he had had her drugged and chained to the bed she had woken up the next morning and apologized to him immediately for the 'poor way she had treated him' and begged him to let her out of bed. It hadn't mattered to her at the time that she hadn't meant a word of it, or that saying she was sorry was about as difficult for her as swallowing fire. He had told her that he would keep her chained till she apologized and she believed him. The only question being whether to give in immediately or drag it out for a few days before finally having to give in. She didn't care if she had taken the 'easy route' for herself or not, nobody was on her side in this.

After a while of her sobbing about how sorry she was and how she would try to do better he had finally agreed to end her punishment, removing her shackle. He had continued the tranquilizing tonics, however, keeping her on a steady diet that curbed her 'rough edges' and left her easily exhausted if she got too worked up. They didn't knock her out like the first one had at least, just making her feel sluggish for days on end. She couldn't remember anything else that had happened that night, or even parts of the next morning, she had been so out of it. She had begged him several times over the last few moons to stop making her take them, but he had thus far refused, usually just saying that she still needed them, as though they were medicine for a sickness she had or something.

Meanwhile he had grown much nicer towards her in all other aspects, treating her better than she could hardly remember him ever treating her. She hated him more than she ever had before though. God, how she loathed him. She would have loved to get completely pissed off enough to just haul off and attack him. Maybe even try to kill him, but she just didn't have the energy. Even her emotions could be too much for her some days and just wear her out before she even ever got a chance to express them.

Although he had released her from her chains after she had apologized, he had found a way to keep her caged inside her own body. It was hell.

Sarah let out another sigh and rubbed her head, already feeling the pulls of fatigue coming on from such upsetting thoughts. She tried to think about something else. It was the middle of the day and she was with the boys, using what energy she had throughout the day to spend time with them. It would do her no good to wear herself out over such matters right now.

Mavias started squirming in her arms like crazy, finished with his fit and ready for the rest of his bottle. She shifted him around and gave it back to him, smiling at the way his black hair stood on end every which way from the static of his movements. It was getting rather long and it was growing in very thick. She would have to ask Jareth for permission to cut it before too much longer. She glanced up at Toby, who was also overdue for one as she could barely make out his pouty scowl from under his blonde curls. "I want go outside!" he tried again, baulking just a bit at the steely look she shot him for raising his voice at her again. He quickly changed his approach, dropping his head and shoulders and making a beeline first away from her than back after a couple steps, "Outside!" he whined pitifully with the demand gone from his voice now. It actually came out a lot more like a muttered 'outsiiiiiiiiiide!"

It was already warming up outside, but even if Sarah had had the energy, she still wasn't allowed out in the gardens without either Jareth or Mavid chaperoning her.

"How about we play a game in here?" she countered, hoping she could muster the energy for it.

"No!" Toby shouted again, stomping away from her without care if he got in trouble or not. "Outside!"

Mavias started to cry again.

"Outside!" Toby insisted, being a brat.

"Toby you stop shouting right now!" Sarah shouted back, aware of the irony. She had warned him not to. Around two years old now, however, he had been searching out ways to push buttons any way he could. It hadn't been just with her either.

"What's going on here?" a stern male voice demanded, giving pause to both Sarah and Toby, who hadn't noticed the nursery door open. Jareth stood in the doorway, stepping in once he saw the two of them squared off for the hundredth time that week. "I could hear shouting from out in the hall."

Sarah let out a huff, unwilling to admit that she was just a tiny bit glad that Jareth was here to help her with Toby now.

"I want go outside!" Toby whined, stomping a little foot on the ground.

"His shouting is upsetting Mavias," she sighed, leaning back in her chair again. The babe's cries were enough to make her weary head hurt and she was thankful when he accepted his bottle once more.

With the babe seen to Jareth turned to Toby, taking hold of his angry son's hand and stooping down so he was level with the young blonde. "You need to listen to your mother when she tells you to quiet down," Jareth admonished him gently.

Toby simply shot him a glare that was actually quite impressive for a child his age and stomped his foot, immediately trying to wiggle out of Jareth's grip. "NO!" he screamed again at the top of his lungs.

Sarah had seen it coming and had managed to place a hand over Mavias's exposed ear, his other one shielded from where his head rested against her shoulder. His blue eyes were focused on Toby and Jareth as he continued to drink his milk.

Jareth managed to keep his grip but with difficulty. "Stop it," he ordered.

"No!"

"Toby-"

"NOOOO!"

Jareth pulled the toddler closer and brought his free hand down in a swat to Toby's bottom. "NOOOOOO!" Toby screamed again, dropping to the ground dramatically and sobbing into the carpet as though he had been stabbed.

Jareth released his limp little wrist as he went into full tantrum mode, wrapping his arm around the tot to pick him up around the waist instead. Sarah could do nothing to help either Jareth nor Toby, forced to just watch as Toby was carried over to his crib and quickly deposited inside. With an annoyed huff Jareth went back over to Sarah, coaxing her up from the rocking chair so they could leave Toby alone with his fit.

She shuffled Mavias around as best she could and got up, allowing Jareth to lead her out of the nursery. He closed the door behind him but she could still hear Toby screaming and crying inside, though it was much more muffled. "He's doing this more and more," Jareth growled, though she knew he wasn't mad at her about it.

"He's just upset that he cant always have his way," Sarah sighed. Thinking that there was little difference between Jareth and him despite the age difference.

"You can not argue with him as though he is your equal when he does this, Sarah," Jareth scolded her, though his voice was soft. "I told you last time that when he starts up you have to nip it in the bud immediately."

"I was busy with Mavias," she defended, "It's not like I allowed him to go on and on for hours, Jareth. You walked in almost right away," Sarah replied dully, already feeling a little worn out and very reluctant to have this discussion.

"Just the same," he insisted, brushing off her point like it was nothing. Jareth reached out and took Mavias from her arms, which she was glad for since his weight was almost too much for her when she was weary from her 'medication'. He was finished with his lunch anyway, simply continuing to suck at the empty bottle methodically. Sarah allowed her tired arms to drop down to her sides. If Jareth wanted some time with Mavias perhaps she would be able to sneak in a power nap.

It wasn't to be though.

"You should go down to see Aboris. He's expecting you," Jareth informed her.

Sarah's stomach filled with dread. She had just been given a potion a few nights ago, so that had to mean that this was another one of the regular 'checkups' that Jareth had been making her go through for the last few months. What it really was was just Aboris checking to see if she was with child. She had a nagging feeling that the medication and the checkups could be related, but just couldn't bring herself to actually think about it, much less ask about it. She didn't want to know.

She just didn't. It would be too much.

She let out a long and weary sigh, slumping over just a little bit. "Do I have to?" she asked, fantasizing about kicking Jareth as hard as she could between the legs even though her voice and demeanor was placid. She hated him so much for putting her through all this. She knew what his answer was going to be before she even asked, so she didn't even bat an eye when he simply said yes and placed a hand on her back to usher her forward down the hall. He placed a tender kiss against her temple and stroked a gentle hand over the back of her neck affectionately before she could continue. She fought off the tears threatening to spill from her eyes with every step.

X

Jareth watched her with hungry eyes as she vanished down the hall, her hips swaying subtly as she walked. He would have to find her after her checkup.

Back in the nursery he could still hear Toby crying to get his way, but he was already quieting down. A few more minutes and he would stop; possibly even fall asleep. Jareth decided to give him the time he needed to calm himself down and carried Mavias with him down the hall, making silly little faces at him as he went to keep the babe amused and happy. Perhaps he would cancel Toby's lessons with Tutor Yaxly today in light of his fit. The majority of what Toby was learning currently for his age were things like the pristine language and basic manners much like the lessons that Jareth had once put Sarah through. Mavias often sat in on these lessons even though he couldn't really participate yet so that he could also start taking in the language that he would one day need to be fluent in. As they both grew more and more lessons and possibly more tutors would be introduced to them so that they could be well rounded in a basic but thorough education of general subjects such as science and mathematics and history. Then eventually they would receive higher educations in things such as decorum and propriety and once they entered into their teen years Toby would start advanced lessons in matters of running a kingdom such as speech, protocols, laws and creeds among various cultures, etc. and Mavias would enter into advanced classes in fighting and defense, organizational skills, memorization of the beings that made up the upper classes, etc. just as he and Mavid had once gone through. Ultimately though the most important lessons that each boy would learn would be passed onto them from their parents.

Jareth arrived back at his study and entered in to see Mavid still sitting on his side of the double-wide desk, going over and proofing the kingdom's budget that Jareth had spent nearly a full day drawing up. It was a seasonal task that they both hated. Mavid's forehead was currently resting on his hand propped up on the table and his brows were drawn so close together in a frown that they almost combined. He seemed grateful for the distraction as Jareth entered the room, looking over his son with a tilt of a smile on his lips.

"I was beginning to think you had abandoned me to this," he smirked, setting down the pen he had been using, one of the ones that Sarah had gifted to him and Jareth from the Black Magic Market, and holding his arms out to take Mavias off Jareth's hands. Jareth passed him over without hesitation.

Seeing that the bottle his offspring was sucking on was empty Mavid proceeded to remove it, but when Mavias immediately started to fuss he quickly handed it back over. "I will let you have that then," he assured the babe, who became instantly content once more.

Mavias shifted the babe around briefly to glance at the back of his neck, moving some of his wild black hair out of the way. "I'm glad his marking looks better. You remember it was beet red around the lines for the longest time."

Jareth nodded his head. "Yes, much better now."

He took a seat across the way in his chair, even though he knew he would hardly be able to focus on anything until Aboris reported Sarah's results, or lack-there-of as the case had been up to now. He hoped for good news this time. Sarah was much sweeter to him these days, whether by personal choice was highly doubtful but he had reached a point of desperation with her. Periodically administered sedation had worked better than he had ever anticipated it to, enabling her to work herself up into a fit without having to lie down almost immediately. She almost never fought with him anymore; although she still disagreed with him the most she could ever do now was voice it and if he was feeling generous enough he would allow her her way in some cases.

The best part was that she was still Sarah, still aware of her own actions unlike she would have been if he had taken his father's advice to use a Cupid's arrow on her. The only real difference was that she was manageable now, something Jareth found himself enjoying very much. She was finally acting like a wife and _treating_ him like a husband. And now without her insisting on being treated as an equal he was free to _treat_ her like a proper wife rather than fighting with her all the time. She might not be happy about the medical cocktail, but in time she would come to accept it and eventually perhaps he could take her off of it when this behavior became second nature to her.

As far as the other half of her medication was concerned, the fertility drugs that Aboris slipped to her through the potion, Jareth was doing everything he could to encourage them taking affect, bedding her every night that he could and whenever he could during the day. Something about the thought that she may now be receptive enough to actually take his seed just made him want her all the more. He would love to have another baby in the castle. One that he and Sarah had made together, as feisty and spirited as they came. Maybe this time a little girl, although he would love another boy just as much.

He practically forgot all about the time and when there was a soft nock on his study's door he jumped slightly, shaken out of his thoughts. "Enter."

The door cracked open and Aboris slipped into the room, careful that none of the goblins that frequented the hall outside followed him in. Jareth couldn't help himself as he sat up as straight as his spine would allow, his anticipation thick.

"Well?" he coaxed when Aboris said nothing.

Aboris produced from his pocket a tiny corked vial containing a pink-colored liquid that had become grudgingly familiar to Jareth. "She's not pregnant," Aboris sighed, looking a little bit weary himself. The vial contained a drop of Sarah's blood mixed with a solution that would turn blue upon pregnancy. Every time it came back pink.

Jareth couldn't keep the glower from moving over his face, disappointment settling in once more.

"It's only been a few moons since she started on the potion sire," Aboris assured him, " There are no guarantees either way."

As though he had not been trying to get her pregnant long before the last few moons. "You are sure that she is capable of bearing children?"

Aboris nodded his head. "Absolutely."

If it were not for Toby Jareth would have questioned himself next. Even having sired a son already he still couldn't help but feel an unfounded tinge of worry. "And there is no way that she could have gotten a hold of contraceptives?"

"I couldn't begin to fathom how she would your highness. Just have a little patience. Sometimes these things take time. Remember there was a fae male in history that lived well into his late six thousands before he impregnated a female with septuplets."

Jareth let out another sigh of frustration, easing back in his chair. He purposely avoided looking over at Mavid, who had somehow managed to impregnate a female on the first try. Of course, she had been monitored continuously to pinpoint the ideal time for her to mate. Perhaps he should do so with Sarah as well. Although that seemed like something she actually would find the strength to fight him on. "The reason that incident went down in history is because that sort of thing normally never happens," Jareth countered bitterly.

He waved the elf off and Aboris exited without hesitation.

Jareth sat in silence, staring at a report in front of him but not really seeing it. His mind was currently fixed on his own self-pity that his wife still remained without child.

Aware that Jareth had no desire to speak to him about it, Mavid began rifling through the mail. "I think she's actually getting worse at this," he commented to himself.

Jareth looked up to see what the other male was talking about. "What?"

Mavid held up the letters, bouncing Mavias on his knee. "I retrieved Sarah's mail back from her last night. Half of them she didn't even open and she marked 'throwaway' on a letter from Loki's human bride Cleo asking her how the babes were growing."

Jareth let out a sigh. "Forge a response for her when you get the time and I will have a word with her."

Mavid raised a brow at that. "Why give her a responsibility in the first place if you'll just allow her to shuck it?"

Jareth let out a tired sigh and pinched the bridge of his nose, trying to massage away the headache that was placing pressure there. "I am more worried about the responsibility she is currently 'shucking' of giving me another child."

"And what of _your_ responsibilities to teach _her_ about responsibility," Mavid countered, smirking just the slightest bit as he pointedly moved the letter across the desks to Jareth's side.

Jareth fixed him with a warning glare, not in the mood for Mavid's smug prods. "You are begging for a sedative cocktail of your own by fighting me on this."

Mavid smiled then, continuing to bounce the tot on his lap in his relaxed state. "Like Sarah's? What would be the point? No matter how many fertility enhancers you pour into it you would never be able to impregnate me. While I can not fight you from trying it I suggest focusing that on your wife."

"Sarcastic git," Jareth scoffed, suppressing a smile of his own now at Mavid's crude joke. He reached over and picked up Cleo's letter to Sarah. "You are just lazy and do not wish to write it."

"I lack ambition," Mavid agreed with a shrug.

Jareth smirked, getting up from his chair. "See that you get some work done if you are going to keep him in here," Jareth instructed, tussling Mavias's locks affectionately on his way out of the study.

X

Sarah was happy that the vial had shown she wasn't pregnant. But each time it was just one more bullet dodged and that only worked for so long. She let out a sigh and sank down a little further into the water of her bath she had drawn for herself, wanting to forget about everything around her for a little while. She had checked on Toby after her appointment with Aboris to find that he was fast asleep in his crib, settled in for his nap. So she had taken the opportunity for a relaxing bath. Not that she needed more relaxation in all honestly.

She could feel tears threatening her again at that miserable thought and so cupped her hands in the water in front of her, bringing it up to splash her face. As the droplets of water dropped off her face rather than tears she let out a long sigh and stared down at her reflection in the ripples of the water. She looked drained, which made since because that's how she felt physically… and more and more emotionally with each passing day.

"I hate him," she stated to no one. There was no anger or upset in her voice, just simple conviction. It was simply the truth.

"Ello."

Sarah jumped in freight, causing the water around her to splash over the sides of the sunken tub and she crossed her arms over her chest to shield herself, looking everywhere for the unseen intruder into her bathroom. "Who's there?!"

"Who do you think? Down here!"

Sarah looked over to the side of the tub and had to cover her mouth so she didn't scream in both shock and extreme relief to see the worm next to her, sitting next to the glass bottle that held her shampoo. She was thankful to see him alive, but at the same time she was terrified at seeing him _in_ the castle. She sent a worried look over her shoulder to the bathroom door, scared that Jareth would come in at any second. When it was clear he wasn't she turned back to the worm, at a loss for what to say to him as she simply continued to hold herself and stare at him in disbelief. She had been sure she would never see him again.

"I don't suppose you have any tea? A cup sure sounds might nice right now." he inquired casually.

Sarah glanced down at the water and then back to him. "Um, I'm sorry but no. You sort of caught me in a bath," she pointed out.

"Oh well no matter," the worm assured her kindly.

"I'm glad to see you, really I am," Sarah couldn't help but beam down at him for a moment before the fear and hesitation returned to her face. "But you have to go. If Jareth finds you in here I don't know what he'll do."

"He'll try to kill me most like, but he wont succeed. I'll leave before he gets the chance is all," said the worm matter-of-factly.

That was all well and good for him, but what would happen to her then? "If he cant kill you he'll finish _me_ off for sure," Sarah muttered, wondering how much she would even really care.

"You could come with me if you want."

Sarah's eyes widened at that. Again she was at a loss for words. "I- I cant get out in the garden alone again. And even if I could I cant go to the Underground women. They would have killed me."

"The Underground women were all killed off by the king's underling. But you needn't go there, I've been on holiday in the mountains. It's lovely this time of year. You'd be welcome to come stay with me and the miss's."

Sarah tried to keep her face blank so she didn't outwardly sneer at his insistence that she live in a worm-sized hole with him and his wife. The thought of running away to the mountains themselves wasn't so far-fetched, but at the same time she knew that Jareth would just come and get her, or send Mavid after her. "That's very kind of you to offer but I just don't think that would work." she sighed.

"Well, if you change your mind…" the worm trailed off.

"Thank you again, but I doubt there's anywhere in this world that I would be safe from Jareth."

"He's still being bad to you is he? I was afraid of such. "

Sarah couldn't help but think back to when the worm had first tried to help her escape. Jareth had been so terrifying, so quick to anger. He had done so many horrible things to her, and now, even with all the time that had passed between this time and that, nothing had changed. He had only done more and more things to her, taken more away from her, stifled more of her spirit.

Sarah could feel the urge to cry come up on her fast and wasn't able to hold it back when the first few sobs pushed their way out through her lips and she could feel her face heat up.

"There there now miss!" the worm coaxed, his voice full of concern for her. "You needn't fuss so, why be giving him the satisfaction? If you are so unhappy, why not come with me?"

"He'd just find me, then it would get worse," she sniffled, trying to force down her emotions once more. She splashed more water on her face.

"Is there a place you know of that you'd be safe?"

Sarah shrugged. "I don't think he could come after me in the Aboveground without being invited, but there's no where I can think of down here."

"How would you like me to see if I can find a way for you to get to the Aboveground then?" the worm asked, his tone on the chipper side of optimistic.

Sarah didn't allow herself to hope for such things. That would be the sort of thing she just didn't think she could bare to be let down on again. She still remembered too how horrible it had been when she had gotten caught before. And then there was the other side of it, the part of her that had actually formed connections down here. Although they were very few, they were immensely strong. She didn't want to entertain the idea once again of leaving behind Toby or Mavias now. She found herself unable to even begin to form a response.

"I'll just see what I can do for you miss. It may take me a while, but I'll be checking back on you one of these days when the coast is clear." the worm smiled warmly. "By the by, I ran into some blokes you know in the mountains. One was rather rude, I think his name was Hibble."

Sarah's heart rate kicked up. "Hoggle?!"

"Sarah."

She jumped all over again when Jareth's voice called her from the bedroom, this time splashing the worm in the process. She looked to the door in a panic as the knob began to turn and then back down to the worm, but he was already gone.

She didn't have time to remove the look of guilty terror that she knew was on her face so as the bathroom door started to open she turned her back to it, quickly splashing more water on her face as though that would clear it. She could hear Jareth enter the room but didn't turn around.

"There you are, I thought I heard you say something in here."

"I was singing to myself," she shrugged, thinking of the first thing she could.

"You don't normally sing in here," Jareth pointed out after a short pause.

Could he really already think she was lying? Sarah tried to relax against the side of the tub as his boot came into her peripheral vision, level with her shoulders. "I was in the mood for it I guess."

"May I ask what you were singing?"

"Rolling in the Deep, it's by this singer in the Aboveground, Adele. I had it stuck in my head." She really had had it stuck in her head earlier that morning so she was hoping that her answer was convincing since it contained a tiny bit of truth to it.

She tried to keep as relaxed as she could when he surprised her by sitting down on the tile next to her, pretty much right next to where the worm had been. His legs were sprawled out behind her back, leaning over on his side so he could hold himself up on his elbow, his attention on her 100%. He seemed relaxed enough though; she could see no traces of anger or ill-will on his face that would indicate if he suspected her of any wrong-doing. There was an envelope in his hand, which he flipped around his fingers lazily, his eyes currently surveying her slowly under the surface of the water. He seemed to be enjoying the view. Sarah tried to keep her abrupt meeting with the worm from even crossing her mind, as though Jareth would see it that way. She could think about it later, when she was alone again rather than while Jareth was right there focused on her.

"What's that?" she asked, trying to get some of his attention off of her and to the envelope.

Slowly dragging his gaze away from her naked form, Jareth shifted his weight but continued to lay on the tile like a spoiled housecat as he opened up the envelope and turned the letter inside around to show her what it was. She looked at the signature at the bottom and recognized it as the one from Cleo that she had gone through yesterday. She hadn't had any interest in responding. It wasn't that she hated Cleo in particular, but she just felt sort of done with the fae race in general and didn't want to end up knowing more of them. Even though Cleo was technically human she bought entirely into their ways because she was raised on them.

She glanced back to Jareth. Was he mad at her over this?

"Why did you not feel the need to write back to this one?" he simply asked. "You could even invite her over for a visit if you wanted to."

As if she wanted that. "I don't know, I'm just not feeling very sociable. I've been very tired lately I guess," she pointed out, trying not to sound snippy about it.

"You should try to be social anyway. It would be good for you. She is a sweet girl and our families will be keeping close anyway."

Since she didn't have anything agreeable to say on the matter she simply turned back to staring at her reflection in the water. Had the worm really meant it when he had said he would look for a way to the Aboveground for her? Sarah halted her thoughts on the matter when Jareth shifted next to her, she would think about that stuff later.

"You will write back to her," Jareth stated, his tone without anger as it was simply factual to him. "She would be good for you I think."

Sarah didn't ask what he meant by that, she could guess. She had witnessed the way Cleo had doted on Loki even when he wasn't around and defended the fae race. "Ok," she simply said, hoping he would leave her be if she gave in on the stupid letter.

She wasn't so lucky, and his eyes returned to watching her through the water hungrily.

"Are you washed?" he finally spoke, his voice a deep whisper that signaled to Sarah that he was in the mood.

She somehow managed to keep the scowl off her face.

Jareth didn't really wait for an answer, picking himself up from the tile and fetching a towel for her.

Sarah resigned to the fact that she had no choice but to get out of the tub, rising out of the water even though she wished she could just slide back in deeper. As soon as she was out Jareth was right there in front of her, tenderly draping the towel around her shoulders and rubbing her arms through the fabric to help keep her warm. Even though she really wanted to, she didn't turn her head away when he pulled her closer and tilted her chin back, kissing her slowly and gently as his mouth explored hers. She didn't want to have another potion brought to her sooner just because she fought him on sex. It would just make her exhausted for several more days while he took advantage of her inability to fight him on anything at all. So to avoid that she kissed him back, trying desperately to not think about the fact that whether she took the potion or not anymore Jareth was getting his way without a fight.

As he laid her down gently on the hard surface of the bathroom floor and coaxed her legs apart for him she tried with all her might to think of anything other than the fact that he just might have won their little war. She turned her head to the side as he entered her so he wouldn't see the tear that managed to slip from her eye at the feeling that she had lost.

X

"He's just such a little cutie is he not?" Ishapelle giggled to Sarah, watching as the boys chased each other around the garden.

Sarah was unable to really answer, still stunned by Ishapelle's arrival. Earlier that morning Jareth had informed her that Ishapelle would be making a brief visit on her way back home from her honeymoon. It had been at least a few months since the wedding so Sarah was glad to hear that she would finally be able to visit with the female. The one fae she could really connect with. She had made sure to behave herself all morning till Ishapelle's coach had arrived so Jareth couldn't possibly take this away from her as any form of punishment for anything. Jareth had even agreed to allow them to go out to the garden, which Sarah was very happy for because it was finally warming up outside and the fresh air would be nice for both her and the boys after spending all winter in the stuffy old castle.

Jareth was joining in on this visit since Ishapelle's husband was with her too, but that hadn't been enough to dampen her spirits at all.

Her spirits had dampened quite a bit though, following her shock, when Ishapelle arrived and greeted Sarah with yelps of delight and wide smiles like she was the happiest woman in the Underground. With the death of Torik still fresh on Sarah's mind she hadn't been prepared for that, expecting the female to still be melancholy to say the least, but that hadn't thrown her nearly as much as when Ishapelle produced from inside her carriage a human boy, even younger than Torik had been by at least five years, barely into his teen years, and introduced him as "Look what Bastile got for me! He hated seeing me so crushed after Torik's death so he got me a new pet to cheer me up. I have named him Perry!"

The young boy had skin that was the color of dark chocolate and his black hair was cut down in short curls against his head. He had been dressed in the same sort of plain tunic and hoes that Torik had used to wear. He hadn't seemed afraid, just curious, staring back up at Sarah with large brown eyes. She had found that he didn't speak a word of English, however, and she had no clue what language he was actually speaking. Ishapelle didn't seem to know either, but insisted that she would teach him 'common language' soon enough. In the mean time he knew small words like his name and 'come', 'stay', and 'no'.

She had also gotten to meet Bastile, Ishapelle's husband, for the first time. He was a shorter male, definitely shorter than Ishapelle and about an inch sorter than Sarah, but he was pleasant and greeted her and Jareth with the best of manners. There was indeed a scar on his cheek, like Ishapelle had mentioned, but it was so small Sarah had barely noticed it at first. His brilliantly orange hair called for far more attention, tied back in a long tail behind his head and secured with an elaborate lace bow.

When they had settled in the garden finally Toby and Perry had taken a quick shine to each other, engaging in a game of tag even though they didn't understand a word from each other. Perry was apparently very good with children, happy to slow down his running to give Toby a chance. Ishapelle and Bastile both seemed very pleased by that. Sarah could hardly get over her shock.

Ishapelle smiled and said something to her, but Sarah was hardly paying attention. "I'm sorry?"

"Is Perry not the sweetest boy? Look how he plays with Toby!"

"Where did you get him?" Sarah asked, unable to think of it as entirely cute just yet. Had this one been stolen from the Aboveground just like Torik had? Why would Ishapelle accept a replacement for Torik? How could Bastile even think that that was the answer to his wife's grieving? How was it that it seemed to work, since after all Ishapelle was simply beaming at her right now. Was Perry already doomed to one day walk down the same path as Torik had? It was just so unfair!

"I told you," Ishapelle smiled gently, "Bastile bought him for me while we were on our honeymoon. He really is a soft heart," she cooed, turning to her new husband and placing a chaste kiss against his cheek, to which he smiled and returned a kiss to her temple, his arm wrapped around her small waist possessively.

"Whatever makes the wife happy," he smirked, sending a wink over Sarah's head to Jareth. As though it was a joke only they would understand.

Sarah turned her head to look back at Jareth, who only looked amused as he raised his brows at her. She fought not to roll her eyes and turned back to try to reclaim the infatuated female's attention, ignoring when Jareth's arm snaked around her hip as well. She shifted Mavias around in her arms and ran her hand over his tiny little foot as a means of distraction and to calm her own nerves as she struggled to make sense of the Perry situation.

"Where did Bastile get him?"

Ishapelle finally turned back to her and her cheeks were just a little tinted with a blush as she started to squirm under Sarah's questions. "It's not really a polite topic is it?"

Must have been the Black Magic Market then if Ishapelle didn't want to come out and say it. How stupid that all of the aristocracy indulged in the same taboos and yet spoke nothing about it to each other. In which case, however, Perry was most assuredly born in the Aboveground. Maybe he had been stolen from a family that loved him.

"Hey, out of the strangle weed!" Mavid bellowed at the children from somewhere over Jareth's shoulder, causing Sarah to jump. Jareth noticed and placed a hand on her shoulder to calm her before getting up from his seat on the stone bench next to her, joining Mavid as they went after the boys, who were currently taunting some orange colored bushes that were stretching out towards them. If anything it was the plants that needed saving so Sarah turned back to the fae couple next to her once more, hiking Mavias up again.

Without Jareth by her side she felt just a bit bolder. "Your wedding was only a few months ago, I'm surprised is all. I was worried you would still be upset," Sarah drawled, letting a bit of her shrewdness seep into her tone.

Ishapelle's face fell just a little bit and Bastile's brows raised in surprise at Sarah's comment. Ishapelle seemed to collect herself in record time, which was so her, as she pursed her lips just the slightest bit. The only thing to show she was a bit upset. "Of course I'm still upset. Perry could never replace Torik. Just because I'm trying to keep myself happy does not mean that I am no longer upset about losing my beloved Torik."

Sarah felt less than sympathetic towards Ishapelle suddenly. Torik had killed himself because he felt abandoned by Ishapelle when she agreed to marry Bastile despite his objections. Ishapelle had killed Torik same as if she had cut him open herself in Sarah's opinion.

Sarah bit her tongue from saying as much, turning from Ishapelle without a word. Bastile looked at a lose for what he could do and Ishapelle had gone very still and quiet next to Sarah, who now couldn't wait for them to leave.

Jareth and Mavid returned at that point with both the boys in tow, instantly noticing that something had changed in their absence. As Toby and Perry sat on the ground in front of the benches to play a different game together, Jareth's eyes darted over Sarah, who refused to so much as look up from Mavias's face, where her attention was fixed now. He said nothing about her or Ishapelle's change in demeanor though, returning to his seat next to her and starting a new conversation with Bastile to put an end to the uncomfortable silence. Sarah had nothing else to say to either of them though for the time being and Ishapelle seemed to be in agreement with that. Despite her feelings of bitterness towards Ishapelle for in the end treating Torik like no more than a pet, Sarah couldn't help but also feel disappointed about how this visit had turned out. As sweet to her as Ishapelle could be, she was still a fae.

It wasn't until they were leaving that Sarah and her said anything else to each other, and even then it was just a formal goodbye. She scowled at the floor to save herself from glaring at Bastile when he turned to Perry and pointed to the carriage they had rode in on, directing him with a simple "Up, come on, up." Perry complied and received a "Good boy."

Bastile caught her off guard, however, when he turned to Ishapelle and ushered her into the carriage in much the same manner. "Come on now darling, get in." Ishapelle didn't even hesitate, climbing up behind Perry into the carriage. Bastile leaned in the raised doorway but didn't climb in yet, telling Ishapelle that he would be a minute. He turned back and his eyes skimmed over Sarah in a way that was not entirely friendly before focusing on Jareth. "Your majesty, if I may have a word in private with you…"

Sarah tensed up next to him, hoping with all her might he would decline for some reason. No doubt Bastile would tell him what she had said to Ishapelle. She didn't feel she had really done anything wrong, but that was usually when she got into the most trouble with Jareth. She hitched Mavias up on her hip a little higher, glancing over to Toby who was currently starting to nod off against Jareth's shoulder, worn out from all the running.

"Jareth, the kids are tired," Sarah pointed out, hoping to persuade him from Bastile's request. "It's time for their naps."

Jareth nodded his head in agreement but before she could even think to let out a sigh of relief he turned and passed Toby over into Mavid's arms, careful not to disturb his son too much. Toby grumbled a little but in seconds his little head flopped down onto Mavid's shoulder and he was silent again. "Go on ahead without me and get them settled. I'll be in in just a moment," Jareth assured her.

There was nothing she could say and with a sinking heart she could only watch as Jareth followed Bastile away to the other side of the carriage, out of earshot from the rest of them. The thought of another medicinal cocktail from Aboris caused a feeling of dread to pool in her stomach to a point that she actually entertained the thought of forcing the carriage door open so she could tell Ishapelle that she wanted to take back what she had said in order to try and save herself some trouble. She wouldn't mean it though and she was sure Ishapelle wouldn't enjoy that anymore than she would. Instead she turned and hurried back into the castle, Mavid right behind her. She wanted to put distance between herself and her husband just in case he should turn upset with her.

"What's your hurry, your highness?" Mavid asked, his voice as smooth as a con artist's as though he already knew.

He would find out anyway so she saw little point in lying about it. "I think it's a bunch of bull shit that Ishapelle has a new 'pet'. He couldn't just get her a puppy or something like a sensible prat?" she snapped, allowing herself to vent just a little bit. Lord knew she had way more to say on the subject if she really let herself go, but she didn't want to chance Mavid reporting back to Jareth that she had made a big scene about it either.

She had honestly expected Mavid to shoot her a look for her choice of language like she knew Jareth would have, but it was to her surprise when he let out a rather hearty laugh instead and simply continued to follow her. "No, I suppose you wouldn't have taken too kindly to seeing yet another human already at her beck and call. I'm just surprised you didn't say as much to Ishapelle herself. Shows that you're learning a bit of self control… finally."

Sarah felt her cheeks heat up at his comment, particularly because he was wrong and to some degree she practically _had_ said that to Ishapelle. That's why she was worried about what Bastile might be saying to Jareth. She didn't know Bastile either; for all she knew he was blowing it way out of proportion and making it sound way worse than it had actually been. Would Jareth even care about her side of the story?

They didn't exchange another word, taking the children up to the nursery and placing them down in their respective cribs for their naps. Toby was asleep before his head even hit the pillow, Mavias was a little harder to convince, putting up a bit of a fuss. Sarah cooed and shushed him, but it only helped a little bit. Mavid retrieved a ready-made bottle once his hands were empty and passed it off to her over the top of the crib. She gave it to Mavias and was thankful when he accepted it without hesitation, sucking down deep like it was the greatest thing in the world. She let out a sigh of relief, knowing that he would soon pass out too. He usually did when he was in the middle of a bottle.

She kissed her fingertips and placed them against his forehead since she couldn't bend over the crib far enough to reach him directly. She straightened up to turn and do the same to Toby, brought to a halt in her movements when she glanced up and saw that Mavid was watching her. He wasn't just observing her though like he usually did, this time there was a darker look to his eyes that she immediately recognized from all the times Jareth had looked at her like that and her mind immediately brought up the memory of when he had told her he would never turn her away from his bed and that he deeply appreciated the way she treated his son like Toby's equal. He didn't shy away from her gaze, keeping his stare directed on her. He neither said nor did anything about it though. She decided it would be best to respond in kind before he changed his mind, which he was unlikely to do given his loyalty to Jareth and knowledge that she was currently off limits to him until Jareth deemed otherwise.

Turning away from him towards Toby's crib Sarah suppressed a shudder of disgust at the thought. The fae came in beautiful and impressive physical packages, but so did most animals that were full of poison. As far as she was concerned Jareth and Mavid might as well have been a couple of cobras. In Jareth's case it would probably have to be a _king cobra_.

She could still feel Mavid watching her, causing her face to heat up as she kissed her fingers again for Toby.

She jumped when the nursery door opened, even though the only noise made was the soft click of the latch turning. Jareth entered the room, the expression on his face unreadable, but Sarah was able to take a bit of comfort in the fact that he didn't seem outraged or anything, yet. His eyes shifted from her to Mavid over her shoulder though and she saw him shoot the other male a dark glare of warning. No doubt he had seen the way Mavid was watching her too. Sarah glanced back over her shoulder but Mavid was already looking away, ignoring her completely now as he reached down into the crib to stroke his son's hair.

Jareth's face unreadable once more, he turned back to Sarah and crooked his finger in indication that she was to follow him.

She could feel her stomach churn as she did the only thing she could think of that would be safe for her to do; she followed him without question, although there was quite a bit of hesitation.

Once back in Jareth's room he closed the door behind her, having yet to say a word to her about what he wanted, or anything else for that matter. Sarah made sure to stay out of his reach, but close enough that he wouldn't suspect that's what she was doing. She didn't ask what he wanted, waiting instead for him to just come out and tell her.

His expression was serious and disapproving when he finally turned to face her. "I just had an interesting conversation with Lord Bastile, but I'm sure you are already aware of that, Precious."

She didn't rise to his bait, refusing to ask him what about. If he wanted this conversation to happen he could tell her what it was about. She didn't feel so afraid now, as it was already out of her control as far as she was concerned. He could yell at her and she could apologize to him if she had too, having grown quite used to it, and then hopefully they could be done with it without further reprimand.

Jareth crossed his arms over his chest and stepped closer to her. She fought not to step back, holding her ground. "He mentioned to me that you had said something very disrespectful to Ishapelle, upsetting her greatly over the Perry/Torik situation when my back was turned."

Sarah just continued to stare back at him.

"Do you have an explanation of your side of the story or do you concede that he is correct?"

"He's correct," she sighed, unable to say otherwise, "But it's not as though she's the only one upset by it. I wouldn't have said anything if I wasn't upset first."

"Why were you upset?" he asked, frowning and cocking his head as though the concept had never occurred to him. For crying out loud even Mavid had said he got it!

Sarah tried to stifle the outrage that threatened to boil up in her that he couldn't even begin to understand. She managed for the most part, but her voice still came out tightly. "Upset to see a human treated like a goldfish one simply flushes down the toilet and replaces… you're right, how could I be upset to see that?"

Jareth uncrossed his arms and stepped closer to her, running his fingers down her jaw. "You shouldn't take it so personally. It's not as though the same will ever happen to you. It would certainly take more than a fish to replace you."

Sarah glanced up and saw the edges of Jareth's lips turned up into a smirk. He thought he was being funny. She wasn't mad because she was afraid it would happen to her though, so he was already missing the point again. Him telling her not to take it personally only made it worse too. It was her entire race being looked down on by his for no good reason, how could it not be personal? Mavias was a fae, and Toby was a half fae, she didn't want them being brought up thinking that sort of thing was ever okay no matter who the human was. She bit her lip to keep from yelling as much at Jareth, turning around with the intention to march off into her room. With Jareth smirking and joking as he was she suspected that she wasn't in as great a trouble as she had anticipated, but Jareth's voice clipped at her retreating back harshly, the mirth from before gone. "You have not been dismissed."

She let out a sigh, trying to release a bit of her anger along with it before turning back around to face him. He snapped his fingers and pointed at the spot in front of him, directing Sarah on where he wanted her to stand like one would a dog. Like Ishapelle would a human. And to think he had just assured her she would never be treated like that. The hypocritical asshole. Sarah actually considered for a brief moment refusing to do as she was told. It was getting more and more tempting and with the medication wearing off it was getting harder to resist.

She forced herself forward, thinking up every nasty curse she could inside her head until she stood before him. He seemed pleased enough with her compliance, once more reaching out to stroke his hand over her jaw line. "I am not angry with you," he reassured her. "But you can not go insulting Ishapelle over your own sensitivities. You will have to apologize, but I am willing to forego punishment for your ill behavior this time."

He stood before her, obviously waiting for her to show some sort of appreciation for his 'generosity'. Sarah was able to mutter out a 'thank you', but it sounded forced even to her own ears. If Jareth bothered to notice it he said nothing about it.

He was on to noticing other things now, his eyes flicking over her body, lingering around her bust and hips. The dress she was wearing was one of the few A-line figures she owned so it allowed the outline of more of her body to show than her fuller dresses tended to. Perhaps she should have gone for something puffier.

Jareth's hand drifted down from her jaw to her neck and over her shoulder, Sarah tried to swallow down the bile in her throat that tried to rise when he leaned in and placed a kiss against her neck. The first time it was chaste, but then his arm slipped around her waist and pulled her flush against him, hugging the line of her body against his as his lips locked onto the base of her neck and shoulder and sucked at the sensitive skin there. Her hands came up to grip the fabric of his shirt at his shoulders, stopping herself at the last second from trying to push him away from her that way. Hopefully Jareth would just mistake it for her passion or something. He moved further down and hit a particularly pleasing spot on her neck and she let out a low moan without even meaning to; cursing herself out in her mind for the slip that was only sure to egg him on.

X

 _This is so much better than before_ , Jareth mused to himself. Where there would have no doubt been a large and pointless fight before followed by punishments that were unpleasant for both parties, nowadays Sarah was acting as the wife to the king should. It was much more pleasant if when she made an ill-mannered faux-pas she owned up to it and apologized, causing any subsequent punishment to be far less sever and they could make up in the very best of fashions.

She moaned when he sucked at the skin of her neck and the sound went straight to his groin, making him tighten his grip on her and cupping his hands under her bum to hoist her off the ground enough to carry her over to the bed. He didn't worry about being dignified as he dropped her onto the edge of the bed, laying himself out on top of her. He moved to kiss her lush lips, only to be rejected when she suddenly turned her head away from him.

She didn't turn back, but she watched him from the corner of her eye, the look on her face one that admitted to her true feelings. Jareth loathed these moments. The moments when a single glance from her would bring reality crashing back in around them. The moments when she let him see how she still felt about him. He was barely able to reign in his temper, biting down on the curses that he wished to throw at her. Instead he sat up from her, completely releasing her from his hold as he continued to wrestle with his temper less he strike her for upsetting him so.

Sarah had a look of panic on her face now that he had backed off from her, his posture rigid as he sat on the side of the bed. She reached out to him, placing her hand on his wrist. No doubt she meant to convince him he hadn't seen what he had on her face, that she wanted him and all sort of rubbish to keep herself out of trouble's way and try to appease him.

When she spoke it was nothing of the sort, however, just a soft pleading whisper from her saying, "Please don't make me take any more medications."

That angered him even further and he threw her hand off his wrist, ignoring it when she flinched. "You do not behave without it," he snapped, "I had not realized how long you had gone between doses. No doubt that is why you acted out against Ishapelle today."

That made far more sense now actually. It had been almost two full weeks since she had had her medication from Aboris, no wonder she was having such emotional distress from the Perry situation. Jareth let out a long sigh and was able to relax much easier, knowing now why she was having this outcropping of impulsive emotional problems of late. It was an easy fix.

He let out another sigh and stood up from the bed, tugging his shirt back into place.

Sarah did not reach out for him again, but she moved closer to the edge of the bed, worry still etched across her face, but her voice held more conviction in it when she spoke to him again. "Jareth, I don't want any more medications. I hate them. I'm done taking them!"

"You will do as you are told," Jareth informed her calmly.

"I will," she agreed, her voice still soft and imploring. "I'll do what you say and I'll mind you, but _without_ the potion. I don't need it and I don't want it."

She was trying to bargain with him now, but she had nothing to bargain with. It was only when she was somewhat sedated that she behaved so well. Whenever it started to wear off was when she started to defy him, as she had just done.

Jareth ignored her pleading and left his bedroom, locking the door behind him just to be sure.

He took his time fetching the healer, hoping that it would give Sarah ample time to calm down and surrender to it. Aboris gave him no arguments, which was just the respect he was seeking from Sarah and only receiving when he administered sedatives to her. Besides, he could not very well stop having her take her medicine because sedatives were not the only part of it. He intended to keep her taking fertility aids till she finally proved pregnant with his second child. Perhaps then the pregnancy and subsequent newborn would suffice in keeping her in a naturally more calm state of mind.

When Jareth and Aboris returned her his rooms, he was mildly surprised to find Sarah was still sitting on his bed as he had expected her to go hide in the bathroom or her own room. The look on her face as she eyed the goblet Aboris carried bordered on absolute loathing, but when her eyes flicked up to Jareth it merely turned back to that pleading stare that almost made him want to give into her. Their past had taught him all too well, however, that she needed a firm hand in dealing with behavior issues.

"Jareth, I don't want to take that, _please_ listen to me," she pleaded one last time, giving him the biggest and saddest eyes she could seem to muster up.

As genuine as the look of melancholy was, Jareth simply reached out and gave her cheek a reassuring caress before waving Aboris over. "I'll let you sleep afterwards, Precious," he assured her, backing up to let Aboris get in closer.

She glanced back to the goblet in Aboris's hands, glaring at it once more.

"Here you are, your highness," Aboris implored her, holding the goblet out to her.

Sarah slowly took it from his hands, holding it right under her nose so she could look down into the liquid inside, as though she were examining it. She then very quickly but calmly flipped it upside down and Aboris jumped back with a yelp as the contents all dropped onto the floor, spilling everywhere!

Jareth was more stunned when she just as calmly flipping it back up and set the now empty mug on the bed beside her. "All gone," she declared innocently as though she had just drank it all, seeming completely unconcerned that it was coating the plush rug under the bed as well as the skirts of her dress. She did not meet Jareth's glare, her eyes focused forward on nothing with a look of boredom on her face. It was as though she really had yet to realize she had done anything wrong.

The elf's eyes were wide open as he brushed at the liquid that had splashed onto him as well, his gaze darting from Jareth to Sarah and back, caught completely off guard as to what he should do.

This was exactly what he meant to avoid by continuously giving her the medication. Could she really deny that she couldn't manage her mood swings on her own when things like this kept happening? He had half a mind to turn her over his knee and administer some well deserved swats to her pert little bottom. Instead he took a moment to try to collect control of his own impulses. At least one of them had to be able to control themselves. Since Sarah never could that meant that he always had to. "Aboris will bring you another one and this time you _will_ drink it." he informed her, his voice tight as he held back his own feelings of anger. He was not in the mood for her to even dare defy him again.

When the healer only continued to stand in the room Jareth turned his attention to him. "Well?" he snapped irritably, rolling his eyes when Aboris jumped and rushed out the door.

Sarah had yet to do or say anything at all, she was still placid-looking, staring ahead of her at nothing, but they both knew that she was fully aware of what she had done and that she was now purposefully ignoring him and everything else. He wasn't about to be ignored in his own residence, much less by his wife. "You're not making anything easier for yourself," he warned her, his lip curling into a sneer. "You've been behaving well lately, I would hate for you to start back-sliding now."

"I said I'm not taking any more of that stuff," she simply replied, her eyes narrowing as they finally met his in defiance. "I told you."

He turned his full attention on her then, ignoring the wet carpet that swished beneath his leather boots as he towered over her, using his height to intimidate her. Normally it was enough to make her start backing off, but this time her eyes never once wavered any more than the look of determination on her face as she glared right back up at him, although she did lean back a little bit on the bed. "You do not tell me anything," he bit out, his anger taking hold of him once more in the face of her insolence, "You are _my_ wife, not the other way around. Act like it. Stop this nonsense and do as you are told."

"NO!" she suddenly shouted, jumping to her feet despite his nearness so he was forced to step back, one step was all he gave up though. "I wont! Not if I have to take any more medicine. I'm not sick! You're the sick one if anything!"

He shoved her back down onto the bed. She continued to glare daggers at him regardless. The look she gave him set his blood on fire with anger and for a moment he lost himself to it, raising his hand to strike her. Anything to make her stop looking at him like he was the worst monster that had ever crawled out of the Forbidden Forest. He was distracted just then by the door opening, however, and turned instead to see Aboris coming in with a new dose of the sedatives and fertility drugs.

The elf seemed a little stunned and highly uncomfortable with the tension in the room, able to recognized that he had just walked into the middle of a fight he had no business in. He seemed to be considering if he should back out and wait till later to come back.

"Well come in then," Jareth snapped, walking back across the room to put some distance between him and his still-glaring wife. She was positively infuriating. Not for too much longer though.

"Stay away from me, Aboris." Sarah warned him scathingly.

Aboris seemed unwilling to move in either direction to avoid risking the wrath of either of his superiors.

Jareth spun on her once more, ready to make good on his earlier threat of a slap. Why did she have to be so difficult all the time? Now she was contradicting him and fighting him in front of servants. "If you insist on continuing this futile fight-"

"I don't care if it's futile!" Sarah hissed back at him, anger flashing through her eyes. "I will continue! I will continue and I will never ever stop fighting you as long as you keep making me take that stuff. I don't care how tired you make me, I will still fight you all the time! You will have to sedate me into a coma in order to get a moments rest."

His patience spent, Jareth roughly grabbed the goblet from Aboris, some of it spilling on his hand as he marched toward Sarah with it, he had every intention of making her drink it himself. She surprised him once more when she very quickly moved away from him, scurrying back across the bed to the other side, using it as a barrier between them. Obviously she was no longer feeling the effects of her last dose. "I wont fight you though, if you promise I don't have to ever take any more of that stuff ever again. I'll try to behave better for you, I swear it. Just no more of that!"

She looked earnest, and she probably was with the threat of more sedatives staring her in the face. It would be all too easy for her to take it back later if he gave into her though. Jareth snapped his fingers at her and pointed to the floor right in front of him. "Sarah get back over here right now. If I have to chase you down you will regret it."

"Are you going to make me drink that?" she countered, not backing down.

Jareth ground his jaw in frustration, wishing he could take his anger out on something because if he didn't do so soon he was sure to end up taking it out on her. "I am giving you to the count of three and then you had better be ready to drink this. One," Jareth growled out, his attention locked on Sarah as he waited and watched for any signs that she would give in. Her glare was just as intense as his own, her stance remaining rigid. "Two."

Sarah moved then, but it was only to stand up straighter and cross her arms over her chest. The look on her face a clear indicator that she was not scared of him and that she was not going to back down. It only made him want to strike her all the more for her insolence and disrespect and his hand tightened on the goblet he held. He continued to glower at her, giving her a few extra moments to see reason and do as she was told on her own. He really didn't want to have to fight her tooth and nail on this and it would be much easier for them both that way.

She still didn't move towards him.

"Three," he hissed, expecting her to finally change her mind about her stubbornness as she had done before in the past.

She didn't this time though, not even a look that she was second guessing herself appeared on her face and she held her determined expression firmly. The only change was that her body stance became extremely tense, coiled like she was prepared to try to run if he charged her.

It pissed Jareth off to no end. _How dare she_! Was all that ran through his mind over and over again as she continued to glare at him like he was the enemy in battle. His blood burned and his vision almost blurred with his anger and when his fist couldn't squeeze down on the goblet he held any tighter he spun on his heel, knowing he had to get away from the bitch that was doing everything she could to make things difficult for him before he did something very regrettable.

He cocked his arm back and cussed as he threw the goblet as hard as he could against the stone wall of his room. It made a horribly loud Bang and ricocheted onto the floor where it bounced around and clanged several times from the force, the medicine inside going everywhere but he didn't care and he didn't stop to see as he stormed past Aboris, who was very quick to move far out of Jareth's path, and slammed the door behind him. He marched down the halls with no real mind of where he was going, just that he didn't want to be around Sarah for another second. He changed direction and started heading towards the stables, almost colliding with Mavid when the male's path crossed his. Jareth didn't say a word to him and just continued to march right past him.

Able to pick up on Jareth's anger and purposeful stride, Mavid quickly changed his direction as well and rushed to catch up to Jareth. "Where are you going?"

"To the stables. I'm going out," was the short and clipped answer Jareth gave him. He didn't really feel like talking about it at the moment. He felt like grabbing the closest Pegasus and going for a long hard ride to clear his head and ease his anger and stress. Even now the only thought that kept repeating itself in his head was 'how dare she!' and each time it only caused him to tense up a little bit more, to grind his teeth and ball his hands into tighter and tighter fists.

"I will come with you," Mavid offered.

"No."

The male somehow managed to keep his disapproval off his face, knowing Jareth well enough to know it would only make things much worse. "When will you be back? Please tell me where you plan to go in case something happens."

As angry as he was, he couldn't just disappear for even a few hours with no one knowing where he was. He had a kingdom to tend to after all. He took a moment to consider where he would ride to, considering both his parent's and his hunting lodge, possibly a few neighboring villages. He made up his mind fairly quickly though, "I will be visiting Loki. If nothing happens here that I need attending to I think I shall likely spend the next day or two at his estate. Keep watch in my absence and maintain my order. Contact me only if you need to."

They reached the stables and as Jareth picked out a mare and began to saddle her, too impatient to wait for anyone else to do so, Mavid continued to linger, his lips pursed as he thought of how to word his next question. Finally he spoke, "What should I do with the queen?"

He was asking if there was any punishment he needed to keep her to or anything of that nature. It was usually assumed at this point that Jareth's anger was a result of something she had done. The mere memory of what had just happened up in his room caused the smallest of growls to press past Jareth's teeth and his horse tried to take a step away from him in uncertainty. "Just… keep her in her room until I come back. She is not allowed out. Keep the boys in their normal routine as best you can but do not allow her to see them either and I will deal with her when I return."

"As you wish," Mavid nodded, holding the reins of the mare as Jareth mounted her, passing them up to him once he was seated.

Jareth hesitated in his departure just a moment, turning his gaze to Mavid finally. "I do not like to think that you need to be reminded of this, but I saw the way you were looking at her earlier Mavid, you are not allowed to touch Sarah. I advise you do not allow yourself to even think about it."

Mavid nodded his head obediently. "She is yours," he agreed without hesitation.

"I am glad you know that." Jareth snapped, kicking his heels into the sides of the mare to usher her forward into a gallop.


	44. Chapter 44

Sarah could feel her body shaking as she stood glaring at the spilled goblet that had eventually come to rest on the floor after Jareth had thrown it against the wall and stormed out. The medication was everywhere, but it wasn't in her, so that was all that mattered and she felt triumphant in that. She wasn't delusional enough to think this was the end of it though. At any minute Jareth could come storming back into the room demanding once again that Aboris bring yet another tonic. They could very well end up doing this over and over again till Sarah drowned in all the medication.

"I hate him." Sarah hissed out underneath her breath, meaning every syllable.

Aboris shifted his weight around nervously, his eyes also sweeping over the room. It was obvious he wanted to leave, but was unsure if he should in case Jareth came back. "I can understand why," he murmured, his voice just a whisper she almost missed. He still didn't meet her eyes, but Sarah still took a small measure of comfort in his statement. It was good to finally hear someone else acknowledge the validity of her feelings and actions rather than just hearing from everyone how she should act better towards her hateful husband.

"Why do you stay?" she asked him, a slight edge to her voice. She couldn't help it though, she was jealous that he was only employed by Jareth and could leave whenever he wanted. Yet he stayed, despite obviously not wanting to do all that Jareth commanded of him, and despite the fear that both the fae male's of the castle used to intimidate him. She had been wondering more and more why Aboris went along with it all.

He simply shrugged. "Jareth is not my first lord to serve under. He's far less cruel than many of them can be. Many healers have met their ends by order of vicious lords for reasons that were far less than understandable."

She was about to question him further, but they both jumped when the bedroom door slammed open again. This time Jareth didn't enter, but Mavid instead, alone. While it was a surprise, Sarah kept her composure and resumed her tense stance on the far side of the bed. Maybe Jareth had sent him to make her take some medicine instead. She had every intention of keeping her promise to fight against it tooth and nail, however, no matter who was making her drink it.

The look Mavid gave her when he saw her was less than friendly but he turned his attention quickly to Aboris, who took about three steps back out of caution. "Get out," Mavid simply barked at him.

"But his majesty-"

"His majesty has departed the castle, leaving me to oversee his affairs," Mavid snapped impatiently. "Now out."

Aboris didn't even glance back at Sarah, making sure to give Mavid a wide berth as he slipped out the doorway behind him. Once Aboris was gone Mavid turned his glare back to Sarah. She didn't dare move, afraid that if she did she would lose the determined and unafraid composure that she had achieved. The fact that Jareth was apparently gone from the castle made her a little nervous to be alone in the room with Mavid, especially since he had more than once in the past shown his true colors when Jareth wasn't around.

"What did you do?" Mavid asked her accusingly, his eyes narrowed on her.

She managed to shrug nonchalantly, though it took effort not to step further back from him. Jareth could be dangerous at times, but he always had a limit to what he could do to her. With Mavid she never knew. "Jareth didn't tell you?"

He stepped further into the room, but still kept his distance for now. The look on his face was enough to tell her that he was royally pissed. "Why cant you just do as he tells you? He does so much for you, wastes so much patience on you. You deserve none of it though, you ungrateful little tart!"

Sarah almost felt hurt by his words, but only because they were meant to hurt. She didn't give a damn what Mavid thought of her and never had. Her anger flared however and she narrowed her eyes to match his glare. "If he's so patient with me, he's probably not going to like hearing what you called me just now is he? Are you even allowed to be in here with me?"

Mavid's stance went rigid with anger and he wrapped a fist around the exposed hilt of one of his daggers hanging off his thigh, letting go of it almost as quickly as he had grabbed it and turning on his heel to march out the door. Before he stepped out, however, he turned his head to look at her over his shoulder. "Jareth orders that you are to be locked in here until he returns to deal with you. No visitors, and that includes the children."

Sarah blanched a little at that last bit. "When will he be back?"

"Sleep well Princess." he replied snidely before shutting the door behind him, clicking the lock into place.

X

Jareth found himself in a much better mood after staying in one of Loki's more lavish spare rooms. He had arrived two nights ago and although Loki had been away the first night, his wives had graciously welcomed Jareth into the manner and set him up for the night. The next day when Loki had shown up he hadn't questioned as to why Jareth was there in his home, but had simply and joyfully welcomed him and convinced him to stay on for at least a few more days. The only thing Loki asked in return was for Jareth to exchange the favor one day when he needed a break from his own life, seeming to just instinctually know what Jareth was doing by visiting.

Currently the two were engaged in a game of cards, and although there was no prize at stake, Jareth still suspected that Loki was cheating. Half the fun of playing any game with Loki, however, was trying to beat him at cheating though, and so Jareth used a little slight of hand to tuck a particularly bad card into his sleeve to save for later when it would benefit him. Loki didn't notice it, but his fae wife, who had been sitting back to watch the game over her husband's shoulder did and she exchanged a knowing look with Jareth before sending him a wink from behind Loki's back to let him know that she would keep his little secret.

"You're out of your league my friend," Loki chuckled. "I saw her winking at you in the reflection of the window behind you."

Jareth rolled his eyes at the small defeat and slid the card back up into his hand.  
"Are you also using the window to read my cards then?"

"How dare you accuse me of anything so lacking in scruples! The very idea that I would do anything so shady such as peek at your cards while you are holding them down out of sight of the windows reflection without fail is beyond insulting." Loki huffed dramatically in mock indignation.

" Perhaps I should level the field then by mentioning to Jareth that you currently have two cards tucked under your leg," his wife chuckled.

"Woman, be seen and not heard!" Loki playfully snapped back at her, moving the cards out from under his leg. "Find something else to do if you're so bored you feel the need to betray your husband."

Jareth couldn't help but feel a bit of jealousy as the female chuckled and stood up, touching Loki's shoulder affectionately before walking out of the room to amuse herself elsewhere. That was how it was supposed to be between husband and wife wasn't it?

Sarah had been behaving like that for a while when she had been taking her medication. Obviously that hadn't been good enough for her. She had no interest in happiness unless it was on her own terms it seemed. What she failed to notice was that she was in no position to make any terms and therefore would find no happiness in that way.

She was nothing short of impossible.

Jareth glanced up from his hand and noticed that Loki was watching him much more seriously now that they were alone. He snapped his gaze back down to his cards to keep from engaging, but Loki left him no choice. "So it has been a few days now. I enjoy having you here, but you have yet to tell me why it is that you _are_ here."

Jareth tried to ignore the direct question, throwing down another card on the pile between them. "Your turn."

Loki tossed all his cards down on the table without care. "I lose. Now talk."

Jareth let out an irritated huff and threw his cards down as well. "You do not give orders to me, we may be in your home but I still outrank you."

"I am not ordering you, I am greatly encouraging you." Loki smirked playfully. He glanced down at the hand that Jareth had tossed down, a soft curse escaping him. "I should have kept playing. I would have bludgeoned you. That is a horrible hand you had. I couldn't have arranged it better if I had gone through the deck and handed you those cards."

Jareth let out a sigh and leaned back in his chair, looking down to inspect his nails in his lap, pushing back one of the cuticles to try to avoid the inevitable conversation. Loki summoned over a decanter of ork whiskey and two glasses, filling both his and Jareth's with the dark liquid.

"Allow me to offer you a drink, as an apology if you like."

Jareth let out a soft sigh, some of his irritation dissolving. "You needn't apologize, I never take any orders from you as offensive."

"Oh that? No I'm not apologizing for that. I was talking about our game, if I would have seen how bad your hand was ahead of time I would have let you go on cheating just so you could stand a chance."

Jareth took the drink offered him with a smirk and took a deep swallow. The liquid was like fire flowing down his throat and into his gut, strong enough to almost make him cough. Loki topped off his glass immediately.

"How's the wife?" Loki asked, his tone sickly sweet. Obviously he already assumed that was the problem. The warning Jareth shot him only confirmed his suspicions and he gave the most annoying smirk. "That good? Do tell."

Jareth let out an annoyed huff and glared down at the whiskey in his hand his irritation from before now fully renewed. He took another long drink, this time it still burned, but it was more enjoyable. "It was actually very good… for a while. I had her mood swings under control and she was no longer fighting me on every little thing. It was wonderful," Jareth huffed, already feeling himself getting worked up all over again.

"But then…" Loki prompted, taking a sip from his own glass as he got more comfortable in his seat.

Jareth took another drink. "But then she ruined it all. I had her behaving as she should towards me, and I treating her like the queen she is in reciprocation. Did that please her… no," he ranted angrily. He let out another long sigh and pinched the bridge of his nose as he tried to calm down; otherwise he was bound to throw something. "Nothing I do ever pleases her," he muttered bitterly in self-pity.

"She's a female," Loki chuckled. "That really shouldn't surprise you."

"She is so difficult… even by female standards," Jareth fumed, glaring down at his drink like it was responsible for his anger.

"Again, are you really surprised by that?" Loki laughed. "I will also point out to you that she is a _human_. Born and bred to be flawed, just like the rest of them."

"Your second wife is human," Jareth huffed.

"She also has her moments where that is _very_ apparent to me. It was ridiculously difficult to handle her during her pregnancy. Of course the ends were worth the means, but believe me that it was difficult."

"She would never dare treat you the way Sarah treats me."

Loki met his gaze seriously then. "Of course not. She knows that I would never allow her to do that, mother of my child or not."

Some of Jareth's anger returned to him and he snapped his glare from the ork whisky to Loki. "Are you implying that I simply allow her to act as she does?"

Loki was silent for a moment while he formulated an answer that wouldn't result in his ordered execution. He took another sip of his drink before finally answering. "Did she not drive you out of your own kingdom?"

The look on Jareth's face must have prompted some sort of fear in Loki, because he put his hands up to show he meant no harm by his statement and turned his eyes away from Jareth to keep a fight from happening. As much as Jareth hated him for pointing it out, he was right. He was a king without a kingdom, all because of his queen. It made his blood boil all over again and for a second he contemplated throwing Sarah into an oubliette rather than just making her wait for his return in the comfort of their rooms.

"Maybe you should take on a second wife," Loki suddenly suggested, his hands shooting right back up at the look Jareth shot him. His face broke into a smile though. "I meant a fae wife."

Jareth rolled his eyes. "I would almost swear that you are trying to irk me tonight. A second wife is the last thing I need in this world or any other ."

Loki shrugged his shoulders. "It's just an idea, and you would be surprised how much Cleo's behavior is influenced by my first wife. A lot of the time she keeps her in check for me," Loki chuckled.

Jareth tried to think of Sarah's reaction to such an idea and shuddered at the mere thought. That certainly was not the answer to his problems. He finished off the liquor in his glass and handed it back to Loki for a refill, feeling a light warmth starting to creep into his head that helped to calm him, but only slightly.

Loki handed the glass back, refilled with more ork whisky and they both sat in silence for a while, taking the occasional drink.

After a while Loki finally spoke up. "Why do you keep her?"

Jareth continued to scowl down at his glass. He didn't have to even think about the 'why'. He already knew why he kept her with him despite her resistance. He loved her. She made it very hard most of the time for him to show her that at all, but he knew that a part of him did love her. She was the performing mother of his child and to a slightly lesser extent, Mavid's child. She was strong and spirited and kind, she just needed to learn how to show him more of the kindness and redirect her strength and spirit elsewhere. She had the potential to become a very great queen, she just lacked the ambition. In spirit and strength she was his equal, the only problem being that she saw herself as his equal in all ways. In all honesty she reminded Jareth in many ways of just a young female version of himself, and why should he not love her when he so loved himself? No matter how many times and in how many different ways she could anger him he had never yet questioned his continued feelings and wanting for her.

He wasn't about to explain all that to Loki, however, and so simply reiterated the most important point. "She belongs to me."

X

Sarah felt miserable as she soaked in what was her second bath for the day. With her room and Jareth's being the extent of her freedom once more there was little for her to occupy her days with. It had taken her the better part of the first night to get her dress and corset off herself and once that was accomplished she hadn't been about to get back into more the next day. For the last few days she had kept herself in the nude, hiding out in the bathroom when Mavid would bring her food up to her. Probably half of the last few days time she had spent in the bath chamber between hiding out and killing time.

She missed Toby and Mavias, and she worried about what would happen when Jareth returned; if he returned. After three days she was beginning to wonder if he had just left her to rot.

Yesterday she had heard Toby screaming out in the hall that he wanted to see her. It had been while Mavid was escorting both the children from the nursery to their lessons. It had been like a punch in the stomach to hear him screaming for her like that and she only wished she could rush out to hold him. She missed him just as much.

"I hate you Jareth," she sighed woefully to herself, sinking down lower in the tub. That was certainly one person she didn't find herself missing at all.

Sarah let out another long sigh and climbed out of the tub, wrapping a towel around herself and going into the main bedroom with the intent to climb back into bed until suppertime when she would have to go back to hiding out in the bathroom while Mavid brought her her supper. Currently she could hear footsteps starting down the hall and she could surmise that Mavid was probably bringing the boys back to the nursery from their evening lessons. Sarah changed her course from the bed and made a beeline for the door instead, placing her hand against the smooth heavy wood. She wished that she could hold both the boys again. Even just see them at this point.

Toby was going on and on out in the hall about what he had learned that day and although she couldn't make out what he was saying she knew that's what he was doing. Occasionally there would be a muffled response from Mavid.

Once they were outside the door Sarah could finally hear what was being said and her heart clenched when the topic turned from lessons to herself. "I want to see mommy."

"Your mommy has her own lessons to learn, you can not see her yet," Mavid answered, his calm voice muffled enough through the door that Sarah hardly heard him. She fought down an urge to bang her fist on the door to make him aware that she could hear him and didn't care for what was being said. That would probably just upset Toby even more if he knew for sure that she was so close and yet so far, and she didn't want to do that.

He was upset enough about it without her encouragement. "I see her now!" he shouted, gearing up to throw another one of his fits. Sarah knew this could only go two ways once he took on that tone. Either Mavid could give in right away and let him see her, or Toby would start screaming. She held her breath in anticipation of which way it would go, figuring she would take some pleasure in it either way.

Mavid was silent for a minute, seeming to weight his options as well and even though she couldn't see him she could almost swear she felt his blue eyes flick to her door in consideration of saying yes to avoid the fight. "How would you like to go down to the stables to see your father's Pegasus ponies instead?"

"NOOOOO!" Toby screamed without hesitation, immediately going on a roll about wanting to see both Sarah and his daddy. Sarah's heart clenched for the boy and she placed her hand over her chest as if to dull the ache. She hadn't been sure until now that Jareth hadn't been around to see Toby either. That upset her more than anything else, that Toby was the one getting the brunt of Jareth's "punishment". As though time away from Jareth was really such a bad punishment to her. She listened as Mavid shuffled Toby into the nursery, the boy screaming the whole way for her.

She dropped the towel on the floor and rushed over to the bed, grabbing a sheet off and wrapping it around her in place of the towel for better cover, knowing she didn't have time to change into clothes before Mavid came out of the nursery and she was determined to grab him before he could get away.

She secured the sheet around her just as she heard the door to the nursery opening again. She rushed over to the door and banged on it to get Mavid's attention, "Mavid! Mavid, get in here now!" she demanded. There was silence on the other side, which at least meant that he wasn't walking away from her.

"As your queen I order it!" she shouted, hoping he couldn't refuse that sort of thing. Who knew though.

"What do you want?" he growled through the door.

"I need to talk to you. Are you going to come in or not?" Sarah snapped back, wishing she could punch him.

There was another long stretch of silence and then the lock on the door clicked over. She backed up from the door quickly so he could get in without her being anywhere near him, going halfway across the room. He stepped into the room, looking far less than pleased to be there. He closed the door and locked it behind him, in case she tried to get by him.

"Has Jareth returned yet?" she asked, refusing to beat around the bush. Her anger stripped away any of her more timid natures.

"No, and before you even go on I will tell you right now that you are not leaving this room until-

"I said I needed to talk to you, not for you to talk to me," she snapped at him, her rage grabbing hold of her. "Either Jareth needs to come back and see Toby or he needs to let me. It's not fair that he's been depriving Toby of both his parents. Mavias is too young to really understand yet… besides he has you, but you're not Toby's father or mother and he has to have at least one of those things in his life."

Mavid crossed his arms over his chest let out a long sigh and shifted his weight from hip to hip, thinking over what she said. "Perhaps his suffering will finally teach you your lesson."

Her anger seared at his suggestion and she stepped up to him, raising her hand with the intent to slap him for saying such a cruel thing but he put his wrist up to easily block her, though he made no further retaliation. "You really could stand to behave better."

Sarah knew he wouldn't hit her without Jareth's permission, and she couldn't hit him either because he would just block her again. Screaming at him wouldn't get her what she wanted, so she did the only thing left at her disposal. She took a very deep breath and shoved down her anger as best she could, though her voice still came out in a growl. "Do whatever you need to do to get Jareth back here to see Toby. Either that or get him to agree to let me see Toby."

"You seem to think I can make Jareth do whatever I want him to. It's the other way around. That is a big part of how I stay out of trouble, something you could definitely learn from." Mavid sneered down at her.

"And you seem to think that you don't have to listen to me even though I outrank you. If anyone is teaching me to disrespect authority it's you, don't you think?"

He gave her a very tense glare, saying nothing as he turned on his heel and marched back out of the room.

Sarah ran to the door but the lock clicked shut just as her hands reached the handle. She hit the wooden barrier for good measure and cursed Mavid out until she could no longer hear his footsteps retreating down the hallway. There was no telling if he would do as he was told or not.

She let out another long sigh and sank down against the door until her forehead came to rest against her knees. Now that it was quiet she could just make out the faint sound of Toby crying in the nursery. She wished she could go to him, to comfort him. Since she could not she got up and went back into the bathroom for another bath, where she couldn't hear him.

X

Jareth was feeling better. Much better.

His head was buzzing and the whiskey had him feeling warm all over. He wasn't drunk, but on his way and in a great mood. Everything Loki said was even funnier than normal. Loki was having just as much fun, changing his facial appearance with glamour tricks to make himself look like several different people they knew; an old but favorite pastime of theirs. No one could do better impersonations than Loki. The face he was currently sporting was that of Jareth's mother, flipping long blonde hair out of his pointed and noble feminine face before releasing an incredibly loud and sickening belch. "Beat that," he said, his voice sounding just like Kaleen's.

Jareth lost it, his mother would never utter the smallest of burps, much less that abomination that Loki had just pulled while sporting her face. There had actually been a brief moment Jareth had worried liquid would come flowing out of his mouth too it had been so disgusting. He laughed until his sides hurt and he was forced to set down his glass so he didn't end up spilling it. "You are horrible."

"Don't you talk to your mother that way!" Loki bellowed, his face and voice shifting quickly from Jareth's mother, to his own, into Jareth's father's.

"You do not tell me what to do," Jareth laughed, getting himself under control.

Loki, still looking like Jareth's father from the neck up, puffed out his cheeks and brought his hands up to press in on them, blowing a raspberry at Jareth in the most undignified of manners. Jareth couldn't help but laugh again.

If Hamold could see Loki he would likely order that he be flogged to death for such insult. Jareth loved it.

Loki took another drink from his glass and laughed as well, very drunk as he shifted his features around till Jareth almost thought he was looking in a mirror, Loki having adopted his own face now. The glamoured male stuck his lip out in a ridiculously exaggerated pout. "You don't tell me what to do," he repeated, forcing his impression of Jareth's voice into a high pitched whine.

Jareth kicked Loki's ankle, but couldn't hold back his laughter. Loki just knew how to push his buttons. "You ass."

"Don't kick me!" he sniveled in jest. "It hurts."

Both males' laughter was cut short when they were startled by the sound of a sharp tapping against the glass of the window next to them. Jareth looked over his shoulder and let out a sigh of relief to see it was just a message crystal.

Loki shook his head and his face went back to normal before getting up from his seat and drunkenly staggering the few steps over to the window. "Hell," he cursed under his breath, opening the window for the crystal to come in. It zoomed in past him and floated into the room, coming to hover right in front of Jareth's face.

He simply glared at it. The only one who would write him here was Mavid, and he had instructed for him not to unless something was wrong back in the Labyrinth that he couldn't take care of.

"I think it's for you," Loki snickered, flopping back down into his chair and cursing up a storm when he accidentally knocked his glass to the floor.

Jareth let out a snort of laughter at him and snatched the crystal from the air, figuring he would at least see what was the trouble. He turned it over in his hand and held up the letter that appeared there.

"Love notes from your sweetheart?" Loki inquired, re-pouring his drink.

"It is from Mavid."

"I'll take that as a 'yes'."

Jareth laughed again despite himself and called Loki another name before glancing down at the letter, short and to the point in Mavid's handwriting.

 _Your son has been screaming for his mother. A lot._

"Anything good to report?" Loki asked, chuckling at something unknown.

Jareth let out a sigh and leaned his head back against the chair. "Toby is missing Sarah. I have not been allowing her to see him. Unfortunately he has not been allowed to see her either given those circumstances."

Loki rolled his eyes. "And just when we were starting to have some real fun… I suppose you'll be heading home then?"

Jareth thought it over. He honestly did not feel quite ready to go home just yet. Certainly not at the moment while he was still feeling inebriated. He could always just be charitable and give Mavid the word to let Sarah out of her room early. Perhaps it would even help her mood some.

Yes, that sounded much better. Jareth took another drink and asked Loki if he had any paper so he could respond to Mavid. Jareth's conscious nagged at him, having been taught his whole life that there were always consequences for putting off responsibilities, and right now that's what he was doing. He was putting off his duties to his kingdom, his castle, everyone in his life; the nagging voice was a relatively muffled one in his addled mind, however, and for once he ignored it with quite some ease.

X

Sarah jumped when the door to her room opened with out so much as a warning knock, pulling the sheets up to her chin to hide her bare skin. It wasn't a meal time, so she was very surprised when Mavid poked his head into the room. She was thankful she had been taking a nap, so she had been able to cover herself up easily and quickly. Otherwise he would have likely seen her. She gave him the best glare she could muster. "What the hell? You can't knock?"

He glared right back at her. "Jareth is allowing you out." was all he said.

She felt surprised by that, as well as apprehensive. "Jareth's back?"

"Not yet."

He shoved the door open all the way and took his leave back down the hall where he had come from, leaving her to her own devices. Sarah sat in shock and confusion staring at the open doorway, cursing Mavid in her mind. Was Jareth on his way back then? Was she even actually let out or was Mavid just doing this so he could get her in more trouble by telling Jareth she had busted out? Maybe she should just stay put.

Sarah pulled the covers up further, but with the door open now she could better hear both Toby and Mavias crying in the nursery. Sarah decided to take her chances. If this was a trick she would try her best to convince Jareth that it wasn't her fault, though it likely wouldn't matter.

She got up from the bed, keeping the sheet wrapped around her in case Mavid decided to come back suddenly, and rushed into her own room for something more suitable to wear. She pulled on a long nightgown that fell down to her calves, though the top was perhaps a bit more cleavage showing than she would have cared for. The soft yellow fabric covered her well enough though. She didn't even bother combing her hair, though it probably needed it by now. She wanted to see the boys too badly.

She quickly rushed through the rooms and into the hall, running past the mirror painting into the nursery. Toby and Mavias were both in their cribs, down for the night, but not asleep yet. Mavias was crying because his bottle had rolled out of his reach, settling down as soon as Sarah returned it to him. Toby started crying harder upon seeing her, reaching his arms out for her to pick him up and she did so without hesitation, feeling tears well up in her own eyes as she kissed his head over and over again and ran her hand through the curls of his soft blonde hair. Toby cried into her neck, his tears wet as they ran down her skin and he wrapped his pudgy little arms around her. "Mommy!" he cried.

"It's okay Toby, really it is. I missed you."

"Mommy, you were gone!"

"I'm sorry, I didn't want to be. I'm back now," she soothed him. He cried for a while longer on her shoulder while she stood and rocked him back and forth in her arms, humming to him softly a tune she had once heard Jareth sing to her inside a magic bubble.

Eventually he started to calm down and she gave him extra kisses before setting him back down in the crib. "No!" he fussed, reaching for her again.

She took his hand but didn't pick him up. "It's alright, but it's bedtime. You need to sleep."

He started to snivel again.

She ran her hand through his hair once more. "Do you want me to stay with you until you fall asleep?"

"Longer." the tot demanded. "Don't go again, pwease!"

Sarah felt like a vise had gripped her heart and was determined to squeeze until it could no longer beat. Should she promise something like that? How could she? She thought of the worm and his promise to try to find her a way back home. She couldn't take Toby with her, she would have to leave him again. "Go to sleep baby," she coaxed him. "I'm here right now."

"Love you." Toby sighed, settling down finally.

"I love you too," she managed to choke out, forcing back the emotions that threatened to overtake her.

"Night night," Toby whispered, his lids heavy with sleep.

She continued to stand by his crib, stroking his hair and watching over him as he fell asleep. She had intended to go once he was asleep, but now that he was… it was hard to walk away. How could she leave him one day for good if she couldn't even walk away now? She looked down at his sleeping face, the picture of angelic sweetness and her maternal side screamed at her for planning to ever leave him. She looked over into Mavias's crib, he was asleep too. His dark hair was a complete contrast against his pale skin, the pink in his baby cheeks looking all the sweeter for it. The tip of his bottle rested against his bottom lip, a drop of milk left in it's wake. It was the most endearing sight. The war inside her about whether to hope to escape or not raged all over again and she ran her hand over his cheek, careful not to wake him.

"How can you leave them?" she asked herself bitterly.

She had no answer for herself, though she wished she did.

She tore herself away from them, pausing again in the nursery doorway. Once again she felt that deep hesitation and turned back to look at the boys. Jareth was horrible. He was a monster to her. He was a tyrannical control freak that didn't know the meaning of no. Knowing that, she still wondered if she could accept the worms help if he _did_ find her a way out. Toby and Mavias would only have their fathers then. She would never see either of them again. She wouldn't be there to watch them grow up, to help them whenever they needed her. Jareth wasn't always the most understanding. He loved them both, she could tell that Mavid did too. They could take care of the boys on their own if they had to, she fully knew that. There was still that selfish part of her though that couldn't bare the thought of not being with them.

Sarah brushed a few tears off her cheeks and took in a long breath, letting it out slowly. "I wont leave you, either of you," she promised the sleeping tots, though her chest ached all the worse as she said it.

She made her decision, if the worm ever came back for her she would turn him away. Though it hurt her deeply to think of staying here forever. The hurt didn't seem quite as sharp as the thoughts of being without Toby and Mavias invoked.

She closed the door to the nursery behind her as quietly as she could, careful not to disturb them.

She took a moment in the hall to try to collect herself, wiping at her eyes again and leaning against the wall. She jumped when the wall behind her arm gave way and fell out from behind it and spun around to see that she had accidentally brushed against the painting of the mirror and was horrified to see that the paint had fallen right off, leaving behind a strange silvery background that looked like silk hiding underneath the thin paint. Sarah reached out in curiosity and gently brushed her fingers over more of the paint, knocking it away easily enough to show more of the silver silk-like sheeting behind it. She recognized it.

It had been a long time ago when she had been visiting Jareth's mother. The picture room that she had taken Sarah into had had frames like what was underneath the paint of this one that contained memories. She couldn't think as to why this one would be covered up like it was underneath the paint. Now that she could see what was underneath it though she could only wonder as to why she hadn't wondered about it sooner. The silver backdrop underneath suggested there was a memory or two in there, otherwise the frame would be empty wouldn't it?

Jareth must have had it covered up for a reason, like maybe it was a bad memory, but then why keep it? Especially keep it so close?

Sarah's curiosity got the best of her and she placed her hand against the frame, planting her feet on the floor like Kaleen had once instructed her so she could view the memory. She pushed a little more of the paint off of the liquid silk and took a deep breath, slowly leaning forward till her nose touched the silk. She closed her eyes and continued on, keeping them closed until she felt the border of the memory touch her ears.

When she opened her eyes she was shocked to see herself, standing right in front of her with a mistrusting look on her face, her body stance rigid. If Sarah remembered right memories were viewed through the eyes of the one who saved them in the frame in the first place.

"Generous," her memory self scoffed at her, cocking her head as though she were about to be told an amusing story. "What have you done that's generous?"

Sarah recognized the clothes she wore in the memory and the scene that was once more playing out before her eyes even before Jareth's voice bellowed out from where she was looking on in his memory. "Everything!"

She could hardly believe she was seeing this all again. He had kept this memory, and kept it close but hidden all this time. She couldn't imagine why. She couldn't bring herself to believe it was in anyway a good memory for him.

She continued to watch through his eyes as he began to circle around her, going on his tirade that she remembered all too well of how he had done everything he had done for her rather than to her, about how she was the one who was cruel to him, and how he tried to temped her by offering to be her slave if she would only love him, fear him, and do as he said. She could see the hesitation and consideration that passed through her face, though it surprised her greatly. She hadn't allowed herself to realize at the time that she had even considered it, but apparently she had. She had made her decision though, choosing Toby and her responsibilities over his offer.

She was surprised when the memory continued on past her rejection of him and her return home. The memory of their confrontation faded away before her eyes, reforming into a new one, this time she could see Aboris working in his room with many different potions, startled when Jareth snuck up on him from behind.

"You have it ready?"

Aboris steadied himself before turning back to his work. "Your majesty is impatient."

"Do not ask me to show patience in this matter as it is far too important," Jareth hissed moving closer to better see what Aboris was doing.

"I am done and the results are back. It is exactly what you believed, your majesty," the male confirmed.

"And now there is nothing to stop me," Jareth muttered under his breath, Sarah forced along in the memory as he left Aboris and the memory shifted before her eyes till she found herself looking through Jareth's perspective at a new setting, this one taking place within the walls of her home back in the aboveground.

The storm raged outside and the lights were off from the power failure. But she could still see the crib in front of her, see Jareth's arms reaching out as if they were her own to scoop Toby up out of the crib located in her parent's room. She had forgotten how young he had been then. His gloved hands held Toby gingerly, stroking along his cheeks and nose. He brought him up closer to kiss his forehead. "You are indeed _**my**_ son, Aboris's paternity tests prove it, what a lucky little chap you are. Shall we collect your new mother? It is high time we got you both home," he whispered.

He turned his attention to the master bed, where Sarah could see her father sleeping soundly under the covers, snoring lightly. She wished so badly that she could reach out to him, even in the memory. Instead she listened as Jareth scoffed, "Must have thought you were so lucky, claiming my son as your own. I will return the favor when I claim your daughter," he informed her father under his breath, so as not to disturb him from sleep. "Do not think me entirely ungrateful for the care you have provided Little Jareth, however, consider leaving you my ex wife as your repayment. Enjoy," he insisted snidely, carrying Toby out of the room with him right past her father.

He moved out of the room to the landing at the top of the stairs, just in time to see Karen and Sarah come rushing in from the kitchen in a panic. Sarah's heart shot into her throat once more as she watched herself stare up the stairs in shock and outrage. "What are you doing here? I beat you!" she screamed.

"Do keep your voices down," Jareth drawled in a very calm and low voice. "We wouldn't want… Roger to wake up and try anything heroic while my goblins are in the room with him now would we." He fibbed. Jareth swept back his cloak and revealed that he was holding a sleeping Toby between the crook of his arm and his body to them. "Such a charming boy really, despite his surroundings and ill upbringing thus far."

"No. I ran your labyrinth and beat you at your own game. You can't do this!" Sarah wailed in his memory.

Jareth started to slowly make his way down the staircase, Sarah forced along for the ride through his eyes. "Oh really?"

Karen was barely able to choke out a coherent word. "Y-you can't t-t-t-take my son… n-not my son."

He looked back down at the babe in his arms. "Actually I can, I already did so once tonight with Sarah's help. Don't blame her too much for the loss of your son," Jareth continued as he reached the landing at the turn of the staircase, his voice echoing in Sarah's ears as tears slipped from her own eyes. "After all, she never expected the goblins to really come and take the child away. You should be pleased to know that she fought to get him back most splendidly. In the end though he is mine to keep."

"No he's not! He's my son, mine and Roger's and you can't take him away from me," she pleaded futilely. "Jareth no!"

Sarah watched as her memory self whirled around to face Karen in surprise as the woman addressed the male by name, turning her back on the goblin king, "Jareth?"

This was the moment, Jareth was already stringing down the staircase to grab her and drag her back with him to the Underground. She didn't think about what she was doing or she would have known how silly it was to even try, but she let go of the frame and rushed forward into the memory on impulse to push herself out of the way of Jareth's grasp.

In an instant everything changed.

The memory flashed in and out of focus around her, flickering and distorting all around her and suddenly everyone was gone, Carrie, Toby, her memory self. Even Jareth was gone and when she glanced down she was able to see the pale nightgown she had put on rather than Jareth's body. It was very dark now and she could hardly see anything around her.

Sarah felt a jolt of fear shoot through her, certain that she had somehow broken the saved memory. No doubt it would be just another thing for Jareth to punish her over. There would be no hiding it from him if she had broken it. She cursed herself out for having gone inside the stupid frame. Kaleen had told her to be careful of that, but she had muttered something about it being easy to get lost in memories. Maybe she should just find Mavid and see if there was a way to put it to rights.

Sarah turned to try to get back out, but besides hardly being able to see she couldn't seem to find the border of the frame she had walked though, she was in a room… maybe.

There was wood under her feet rather than stone, but it was rough and she had to tread very carefully in her bare feet. Jareth would likely scold her for not wearing slippers either.

Her hands in front of her were not able to find the frame she was looking for, but she was able to find a piece of cloth hanging from the wall, though it felt stiff and a tad bit too thin. She pulled at it and it easily came away from the wall, revealing a window and, to Sarah's surprise, letting moonlight come into the room. It hadn't been dark out just minutes ago though, and though the sky was obviously dark the light from the moon was immense.

Sarah looked closer out the window, past what she could now see was a badly damaged and splintered window sill. What she saw terrified her more than anything she could ever remember.

X

"You will simply have to visit the stables tomorrow," Cleo smiled warmly at Jareth from over her supper plate. "My husband is too modest to say but he has acquired a prize winning Hippogriph. Quite the handsome creature. He plans to breed it."

Loki smirked proudly from behind his drinking goblet. "Do not brag about me, Cleo, it's rude. Especially when you say so little, Jareth's going to think the only thing interesting about me is a stallion. Do be a dear and fill him in on everything else."

"I am sure there is very little else to tell," Jareth smirked in jest.

The rather pleasant dinner service came to a halt when something suddenly cracked against the window with enough force that it was a wonder the glass held. Everyone spun around to see what could have ever caused such a commotion, seeing a crystal trying very hard to force it's way in. a servant standing by rushed over to the window, opening it up to save the glass and the crystal flew into the room, smacking against the back of Jareth's chair in it's rush before circling around in front of him. He plucked it from the air and turned it over to find it was yet another note from Mavid. He ignored Loki's playful comments about the second note, concerned by the manner the crystal had come to him in.

He was able to read it quickly, for all Mavid had written in it was

 _ **Get home now!**_

 _ **X**_

 ** _Ju_** st a few chapters left. Sorry for any spelling mistakes that still remain. Other writers will understand my meaning when I say that it is hard to look back on old works and do much more than cringe, but that is a sure sign of vast growth of your skill.


	45. Chapter 45

Sarah clutched her hand over her mouth tightly, unsure if she was about to scream or cry and afraid to find out which. Her tears blurred her vision and she blinked them away so that she could see out the window clearly, feeling them fall down her cheeks to touch the top of her hand pressed against her mouth. Her whole body was shaking and she didn't know what to think. She hardly comprehended what she was seeing.

Outside the little dilapidated window was a streetlamp, aiding the moon and lighting up the concrete street outside. She had seen neither of these things since coming to the Underground. As far as she knew street lamps didn't exist in the Underground. If they did they held candles or magic lights, but this one was far brighter than either of those and for a second she dared to think that maybe…

But no. It wasn't possible.

There was no way she was looking out at the Aboveground. It just couldn't be possible. It had to be some sort of extremely cruel trick or something. Maybe this was some strange punishment set up by Jareth. It had to be.

But there on the other side of the window was a streetlamp, and a street, and oak trees and older middle class homes all the way down as far as she could see.

Sarah was convinced it was a trick, or a trap, and she wanted no part of it. She turned back to the room quickly to try to find her way out of this mess. The added light from the window gave her a better view of her surroundings and she could see now that wherever she was, it was a wooden room rather than stone, and everything looked badly damaged as if there had been a really bad fire here. It gave her the instant feeling that she definitely wasn't supposed to be here. Where ever here was.

She moved back towards the center of the room where she thought she might have entered in through the frame, reaching her hands out once more into the air in case it was just invisible to her or something else weird like that. She didn't feel anything though.

A badly damaged floorboard underneath her foot let out a very loud groan and she could feel it bow down but thankfully it didn't break before she jumped off of it.

She really wasn't supposed to be here. She was certain of that now.

She wasn't finding the damn frame though. There was a door ahead of her, also well decayed, but maybe that was the way out. She had nothing to lose by trying so she carefully and slowly made her way over to it, keeping an eye out for anymore bad floorboards. The door was locked, but it was just a switch lock on her side so she clicked it over, opening it up to find a couple wooden boards nailed to the outside frame to block her path. Beyond it wasn't the castle like she had been hoping, but rather just another street and more lights.

Sarah glanced out between the boards and her heart skipped a beat again, or maybe it had just stopped, but for a moment it was like time had stopped. She recognized the house across the way. Knew it, remembered it from her past.

She didn't think twice as she pushed against the boards, then brought her foot up to kick out the bottom board so she could get outside. She managed to dislodge it after much effort and hiked up her nightgown a little so she could get on her hands and knees and crawl out of the strange room under the remaining boards. She frantically rushed out over the ruined and burned front porch and down the few steps into the front yard and across the street to stand on the sidewalk in front of the house that was a blast from her past. Seeing it again felt more like a slap in the face though. How many times had she looked up at this house? At the yellow painted walls and red-brown roof. She couldn't see those features clearly in the dark, but she knew they were still there.

This was one of her neighbor's homes. The one right across the street from her own.

She spun around on the sidewalk to face her own home, confusion washing over her when it wasn't there. There was a house there, but not hers, just the one she had fought her way out of, boarded up and badly burned up. It looked like it had been empty for a while and there was some police tape marking it off, but even that had been mostly stripped away by time and the elements. It was strange that it had the same structure of her old home though…

The porch light on the neighbor's house behind her suddenly clicked on and she spun back around, shielding her eyes from the sudden flood of light. The front door opened up and she could see the silhouette of Mr. Woodly, an older man in his sixties. He used to yell at her whenever she played too close to his car as a child.

"Who's there?" he barked, coming out onto his porch. "Damn kids," he muttered under his breath, "Get out of here or I'll call the cops!"

Sarah put her hands out to show him she meant no harm. "Mr. Woodly, it's just me. It's Sarah Williams."

He stopped in his tracks in the doorway, sharp eyes looking her over once from head to foot, then he rushed back inside and slammed the door like his life depended on it. As if he were terrified of her.

X

"Shhh, hush now love," Jareth whispered against Toby's forehead, hardly hearing the cries of the babe over the scream of his own racing thoughts. He did so to comfort his son, but it also gave him a bit of comfort as well. He stood in the hall between the nursery and his bedroom, staring at the memory viewer in front of him. A few bits of paint still clung around the corners, but it was very apparent that someone had gone through.

Mavid stood next to him, Mavias in his own arms.

"I miss you Dada," Toby sobbed softly against his shoulder. His little arms wrapped around Jareth's neck.

"I know. I am back now though sweet prince."

He turned his attention from the viewer down to the crystal he held in his one free hand. Toby did not know anything about Sarah's disappearance yet. No one did. Even Jareth and Mavid hardly did. He could see her in the crystal, though she was somewhere dark, standing on the front yard of her old home, staring up at it in quiet disbelief. He had no idea how she could have ended up there, though it surely had something to do with the viewer that Mavid had found broken into. He could see her, but he could not reach her, nor even speak to her. She would have to find a mirror first for him to contact her.

"How could this have happened?"

"I turned my back on her for no more than an hour, Jareth," Mavid insisted. "I swear it."

"The time frame does not matter, she was under your watch," Jareth hissed back.

Mavid lowered his head in submission. "You are correct, my deepest apologies."

"You will be punished for this later, right now I have many other concerns."

She just continued to stand there in front of the home she used to live in, though he could see now that it was little more than cinders. He did not know what had happened to it, but it did not concern him.

"She obviously went into the memory viewer, but I do not understand how it could have possibly transported her anywhere," Mavid offered up.

Jareth did not know either. He could not just go chasing after her though, not without being called into the Aboveground. She had somehow found a doorway through. He had no idea how, was absolutely baffled by it. She had been looking for an escape the entire time, he was not fooling himself against that. Somehow she had finally succeeded.

He closed his hand over the crystal and it vanished.

"What do you want to do about this?" Mavid asked him.

Jareth was silent for a long time, trying to figure it out himself.

X

Sarah stared up at the house that mockingly claimed to be her own. Her mind could hardly process what she was seeing. Why did it look like that? Like it had been set on fire. She was so lost in her own mind that she didn't even hear the scream of the police sirens until the headlights hit her.

It all happened in mere seconds after that.

She turned just as a man's voice started screaming at her, though he was so frantic she could barely understand him and her mind was still moving too slowly to even begin to comprehend what was happening.

"I said hands in the air!" he screamed at her from next to his car.

She had only just started to bring her hands up when something huge and strong tackled her from the side, another officer taking her down to the ground hard. It hurt badly, but not as much as when the larger man grabbed her hair and shoved her head against the ground, almost knocking her senseless. Thankfully he had knocked her onto the lawn rather than the cement. She screamed and tried to shove him away but he grabbed her wrist and pulled her arm behind her back, locking a cuff around it. There were more people there, yelling and rushing about. Several pairs of boots came into her view and she screamed again when the officer almost broke her arm because he cuffed her so roughly. What the hell was going on?

"Stop it!" she screamed as she was dragged up onto her feet and someone behind her started to touch her, patting down her sides and legs through the very thin night gown.

"Where's your ID?" someone shouted in her ear, causing her to flinch.

"I- what?"

"None on her, not even a wallet."

The hell is she doing back here?"

"What's your name?"

"S-Sarah," she gasped out, though her voice shook with her fear. What the hell was going on?

"Last name?" the officer barked at her.

"Williams."

"Holy shit it _is_ her."

"Of course it's her, we all it is."

"You have the right to remain silent when questioned. Anything you say or do may be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to consult an attorney before speaking. If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be appointed for you. Do you understand your rights as I have explained them to you?"

What the hell was going on?

She was shoved forward suddenly and the side of her head connected hard with the frame of the car door as they tried to shove her down into the back seat. She let out a yell but the cuffs wouldn't allow her to clutch her forehead to sooth her pain. The cop handling her showed no pity, if anything it was just the opposite as he shoved her down roughly into the back seat, slamming the door behind her so quickly that she was just barely able to get her leg up and out of the way. "What the hell is going on?" she screamed out the window. She had just been on the sidewalk… how was that even trespassing? What about her house? What had happened while she had been gone? Where was her dad now if not here? "What the hell is going on?" she repeated softly, this time to herself.

X

Jareth sank down low in the water of his sunken tub. The water was as hot as he could stand it, causing a glistening of sweat to form on his brow and he was sure his cheeks were red from the heat. It helped to put his mind in a fog, but it was not enough to slow his thoughts about Sarah. She had finally succeeded in leaving him, going some place he could not follow without an invite. How had she done it though?

He had not anticipated this happening; not a second time. The Underground women had been wiped out, there was no one to help her. Yet she was gone just the same.

He let out a soft sigh. She was gone.

A very small movement out of the corner of his eye caught his attention and he whipped his head around to the shampoo bottles that Sarah had left out in time to see none other but the worm crawl out from behind them!

Obviously the worm had not been expecting to see Jareth and for a moment they just stared at each other in shock. The shock between them broke at the same moment and the worm made to quickly get away but Jareth was faster, just barely able to seize him before the worm could move and his fist clamped down tightly on the wiggling worm to prevent an escape, just short of crushing him in the process.

"Your nerve is quite astonishing I must say!" Jareth sneered, just barely able to keep a hold of his outrage at seeing the worm so boldly sneaking around his bathroom just hours after Sarah had left him.

"Let go!" the worm shouted in fear.

"I will do no such thing," Jareth assured him coldly. "You are gong to tell me how you helped my wife to escape me, and then I am personally going to end your miserable little life!"

"The girl is gone? When? How?" the worm gasped, clearly stunned by the news.

"You expect me to believe that you did not assist her?" Jareth hissed.

"Would I be here if I knew that she was not?" the worm reasoned, still wiggling to get away. "I come back to tell her I had not found a way for her to leave yet, but I was going to keep trying if she wanted me to."

Jareth could believe now that the worm had not helped her… this time. He was right that it would be beyond foolish for him to return if he had been aware she had left. The fact that he had failed in his mission to help her would not grant him any mercies though. Jareth fought against his urge to crush the worm in his fist, but tightened his grip a little non the less. The worm let out a grunt in protest.

"She's really gone you say?" the worm asked, "How? When? She never even said good bye." his voice wavered at the end of his sentence with emotion.

Jareth kept his hold, but with a sigh rested his elbow on the side of the tub's rim, gazing down at the water for a moment. The worm was right that she certainly had not seemed to make any attempts to look back in her decision to escape them. He had briefly looked through the nursery, his room and hers before deciding to relax in a bath to ease himself. He had known he would not find her, but had discovered no note of goodbye to himself or the boys. Nothing out of place to indicate she had packed anything to take with her. Her jewels were all still there… even her yoga pants. It seemed all she had taken with her was the nightgown on her back. Jareth's head suddenly rose up a little as he recalled seeing everything in place in her closet.

She had not taken any shoes with her either. Surely if she had meant to return to the Aboveground she would have taken at least shoes with her. He had seen her in his crystal, barefoot and barely covered in her nightgown. Perhaps she had thought to change once she had arrived, but even then it seemed unlike her to go into the Aboveground so ill outfitted.

"How did she go? Please tell," the worm repeated.

What could it hurt to do so now? Jareth let out another sigh and shrugged his shoulders a little. "I do not even know for sure. All I know is that she discovered an old viewing mirror that I had hidden away from her, that she probably stepped into it. Viewing mirrors can not transport people to other worlds though, so I do not know how she could have used that to do so. She must have found a way to be invited back or something…

The worm started to chuckle under his breath and though the noise was very soft Jareth heard it and snapped his attention back to the little pest.

"I don't suppose any of the memories she found in that viewer took place in the Aboveground? Perhaps a memory she was a part of?"

Jareth brought the worm back in front of him, holding his fist directly in front of his face. "What are you getting at?" he growled, the hairs on the back of his neck standing to attention. "How did she leave?"

"The clever girl, she left the way I taught her to of course. If only I had thought about it, but then I hadn't known about this viewer of yours either. Sometimes we can get lost in memories after all."

"You are trying my patience when it is the most dangerous time for you to do so. Are you telling me that she is still in the viewer?" She was not, Mavid had already searched past the memories for her, but only the original memory of her remained in there.

"Of course not, all one needs to do to travel wherever they wish is visualize every detail of where they want to be, then step forward with the very real belief that they are there. The smallest second of doubt will make it impossible."

So it was a mind over matter sort of magic. A very advanced kind. She must have stumbled on it by accident then. Perhaps for a second she had forgotten where she was, became so-called 'lost in the memories'.

It was perhaps possible, but at the same time impossible as far as he knew for it to be. True it was a simple parlor trick to move about that way, but it took much skill and practice and to do so between realms was known to be impossible for the fae. The rules of travel between realms prohibited such a thing. Apparently even those rules were just meant to be broken… but by Sarah? Someone so naive and inexperienced about such things. Maybe it was that she was of that realm that granted her some leeway, but there was no way to know for certain. If it had ever entered his thoughts that she could have possibly used that to escape from the Underground he would have had it destroyed.

She had to have stumbled upon her escape by accident then.

The worm let out another small and bitter laugh at the goblin king. Jareth's outrage overtook him again and this time he let it, tightening his grip just enough for there to be no chance for the worm to break free of him. Fixing his gaze on the mirrored wall across from him, he dropped his fist down under the surface of his bathwater, knowing that with the worm's small size it would only take seconds to drown him. The wiggling in his fist increased dramatically, but quickly decreased and then stopped all together. Jareth did not raise his hand at first. The image of him in the mirror had seemed like a peaceful one, with all the struggling for life happening out of sight. He let out another sigh as he watched the boredom that overtook the look of anger on his face.

He stood up from the bath, the lifeless body still in his fist as he grabbed a towel and wrapped it around himself, throwing the worm's body in the wastebasket on the way out of the room. He needed to get Mavid, and then he needed to figure out what to do about Sarah.

X

What the hell was going on?

Sarah couldn't help but think that to herself over and over again as she sat in a plastic chair behind a heavy metal desk in a tiny waiting room all by herself. There were two empty chairs across from her, a camera in the corner of the ceiling, and a large mirror taking up the far wall that was probably two-way. There was nothing else though. The cops hadn't spoken two words to her all the way to the station, where they had pushed her through booking and placed her in front of a nurse behind a bulletproof glass that asked her general health questions, if she had any medical issues they had to be aware of while she was with them and such. They had then quickly taken her into a side room where a large female officer had had her strip down so she could go through a cavity search, which had been the cherry on top of this humiliation-cake.

She had then been handed back a more covering and baggy grey smock like nurses wear in place of her revealing yellow nightgown and a pair of plane white slip on shoes in a ladies size medium to change into. They had told her to remove her signet ring, enchanted to stay on her finger by Jareth himself, and she hadn't been able to even budge it. Three more officers had tried to remove it for her, but they had almost taken her finger clean off. Then they had tried cutting it off, but hadn't been able to even scratch it. They gave up for now. After that she had been escorted to have mug shots taken and then dumped in this little room that was no doubt for interrogating. She actually wanted someone to come in and talk to her, if for no other reason than to tell her why she was here, or maybe even why her old home had looked like it had. She had been in here for what had to be hours though and so far no one had come. She had cried uncontrollably for the first hour, and even though she was calmer now, she felt no more emotionally stable. She was certainly starting to believe that she was in the Aboveground again… though there was still that lingering doubt that Jareth had gone above and beyond in some twisted punishment for her.

She was certainly feeling very _punished_ right about now.

Sarah's head shot up from her hands when she finally heard footsteps out in the hallway and the click of the door unlocking. The door opened up and two men in uniform stepped in, one of them flipping through a manila folder, not even bothering to glance up at her. The one with the folder was heavy-set with dark short hair and a dark mustache sitting over lips so pink they could have passed off as lipstick-covered. The second officer was older, with many medals on his shirt and gray hair starting to thin up top. He still had rather buff-looking arms though and Sarah could see a faded tattoo peaking out from under the sleeve of his uniform shirt. They sat down in the chairs across from her, both of their faces hard and the glares they gave her actually sent shivers down her spine, like they actually personally hated her or something.

The older gentleman spoke. "It has been a long time since you were last seen around here Miss Williams. I would be lying if I said I ever expected to see you again. It takes a lot of balls and stupidity to return to the scene of the crime."

Sarah stared back at them in complete confusion. "Crime?"

Both men glared hard at her. It was the younger one that spoke first. "I suppose you wouldn't think of it as a crime would you? It takes a very sick fuck to do what you did."

Sarah's mouth gaped and even through her shock she heard Jareth's voice in her head scold her for the 'fish face', closing it despite her confusion. "W-what did I do? What happened to my house? Where is my dad? What did I do?" she asked, on the verge of panic and once she started asking questions they all just tried to spill out.

The officer with the mustache stood up from his chair, leaning on his hands on the desk as he glared down at her. "You know damn well what you did! We know you had it all planned out. We found your diary Miss Williams. If your trying for a plea of temporary insanity by pretending you don't know or remember then let me stop you right there. No jury is going to buy it with the evidence we have on you. This is already an open and shut case, whether we get your confession or not."

"Confess… what am I being charged with?" Sarah asked, nearly shouting now.

"What indeed," the older officer sighed. He looked tired.

The other one turned to the front page of the folder. "One count of arson, one for assault and battery on an officer, one count of assault with a deadly weapon on an officer -maybe you remember me now-," the man growled at her, holding up his left arm so she could see a long and vicious looking scar running up the back of his forearm. "I sure as hell remember you." he told her menacingly. "One count of voluntary manslaughter on an officer, one count of murder in the first degree on a civilian. Honestly what you have is enough to land you in the chair. This is a death penalty state after all."

Sarah hardly knew what she was hearing, she had only more questions than answers now and she tired to calm herself down even as the tears started falling. "I- I want to see my daddy," she sniffed, at a loss for what else she should do.

Both officers exchanged dark looks before the younger one stood up from his chair in anger and paced around a little, as if he was trying to collect his anger. The older one stayed seated, but bit down on his jaw like he was fighting calling her a few horrible names. The mustached man suddenly turned on his heel and charged back at the table, causing Sarah to flinch as he grabbed the folder and picked it up, flipping it open.

"Dan-" the older officer warned, but it was too late as 'Dan' started pulling out some sheets of paper.

"Ok, ok fine you want to see him? You got it you heartless cunt." He threw a photo on the table in front of her, followed by three more very quickly. "Here he is. Here he is. Here he is. And here. There's your 'daddy'," he hissed at her in utter disgust.

Sarah looked down at the photos but she was only confused again as the older officer let out a sigh and watched her closely for any reaction. She wasn't sure what he was looking for though, or what she was supposed to be looking at. The photos were different angles on something that was a red and brown mass sitting in a bathtub… she didn't know what it could possibly be. Some were close ups and she could start to make out what looked like a mix of new and dried blood, but she wasn't sure beyond that.

"By the time the fire died down enough for us to get to him we had to identify him by his dentals. But that didn't remove the thirteen stab wounds we found in his torso. It didn't remove the evidence that you had slit him across the throat from ear to ear either. The knife you used on him… and then later on my arm had your prints all over it, but then I also got to see you trying to stab me, merely one of many witnesses you left behind to testify against you in all this mess. Thanks for leaving the murder weapon in me by the way."

This photo wasn't of her father, she could start to make out that this was a burn victim, and that one of the photos was a close up of a char-surrounded stab wound, but this wasn't her father. There was no way. It was a photo of chard and butchered meat.

"Hey!" Dan shouted at her, reclaiming her attention. "I have a little girl at home. She calls me 'Daddy'. She could never do what you did. You lost any rights to the word 'Daddy' when you did this. You try pulling your 'I want to see my daddy' bull shit again and I wont be responsible for my actions!"

"Dan, let's just calm down now," the older officer sighed.

Sarah looked back down at the photos and felt her body start to shake violently and there was nothing she could do to control it. Without warning she lost all emotional control and a scream tore through her throat.

X

"Gone, what do you mean she is gone?" Kaleen balked, pausing in the middle of stirring her tea. "Where has she gone?"

Jareth and Mavid both sat together on the ornate couch across from her, their tea cups both left untouched on the small gold table in between them. Jareth had not known what else he could do, so he had swallowed what little dignity he had and had sought out the advice of his mother. He did not know who else to go to with this. It was beyond embarrassing to admit, and he could not risk anyone finding out. He could not meet his mother's eyes though… nor say the words.

"Jareth?" his mother prompted.

Mavid answered for him. "We have reason to believe that somehow she escaped through a viewing mirror and returned home."

Kaleen stopped moving entirely with the cup poised right under her lips, about to take a sip. Nothing about her changed as she processed the information handed to her and all it meant. A champion poker face.

Then without warning that composure snapped and she lowered her cup so fast that it sloshed over the side onto her dress but she took no notice. "Jareth!" she scolded, raising her voice one of the few times in her life. It was a tone she used to use to scold him as a child, one he still could not help but flinch from. "Oh… oh how could you? How could you let this happen again?"

"Mother please," Jareth sighed, this being the last thing he needed. As though his utter embarrassment and distress needed compounding.

"I hope you feel embarrassed!" she hissed at him, a deep frown marring her face. "I do hope you feel mortified, because you should. I love you darling, but to have this happen for the second time… who all knows of this?"

"Nobody else knows," Jareth grumbled, wishing now that his mother was not even part of those who did. The last thing he needed right now was a scolding.

Kaleen looked down to her lap, finally noticing the spill she had made and her lip curled slightly in disdain. She gently set the cup down on the table to join Jareth's and Mavid's. "That is good. I think it best we keep it that way until this has been resolved one way or another. Jareth, what do you plan to do?"

He crossed his arms over his chest and leaned back against the loveseat, his gaze shifting from the floor to the far wall. "I do not know," he simply said.

"You do not know?" his mother repeated in disbelief.

Perhaps he could find a way to get Sarah back, but did he even want to try?

"There are two things that we can do at this point," his mother sighed, "We either get her back and say she was on a trip that you allowed her on to save face, or we leave her and can say that she died suddenly. Death is a lot less embarrassing for you than another runaway wife."

Jareth and Mavid exchanged looks. Jareth was unsure about which he should do. "I do not know," he shrugged again. "She wanted to leave. Perhaps it is best to let her stay."

"Then we can tell everyone she died. Make up some sudden and unfortunate human sickness. Do humans die from colds?"

Jareth scowled down at the floor.

"What is wrong with that?" his mother asked him.

"She still belongs to me."

"You want her back then?"

Jareth could only continue to scowl at the floor.

"If you are so conflicted then maybe you should find a way to bring her back and if you tire of her then we can… take care of the problem then. In a better and less scandalizing way than allowing her to run away- I mean, take a trip."

Jareth looked up at his mother then, a question burning on his lips. "Do you love father?"

His mother seemed stunned by his question, not moving or speaking. It was hard to believe that she was even still breathing as she stared back at him blankly. "Why do you ask that, Darling?"

"I am simply asking it."

Mavid had shrunk back against the couch at this point, probably trying to stay out of the crosshairs.

Jareth's mother looked thoughtful for a moment, picking her teacup back up daintily. "Yes," she shrugged nonchalantly before taking a sip.

Jareth cocked a brow at her, less than convinced by her answer.

She let out a small huff under her breath, "Honestly. I suppose the thing about love that you have to remember darling is that love is a selfish act. It truly is. Rather a nuisance." She stirred at her tea some more. "We only love those that we wish to love us back. If you do not care if someone loves you or not it is because you do not have any desire to love them. I defy you to tell me one person you love that you do not yearn to receive some measure of love from in return. I can not help but love your father. I always will to some measure or another. I believe he feels the same about me."

She had been as honest and open in her answer as she could have possibly been, and Jareth appreciated the rare gesture. Ready to return home, he stood up from the couch and moved around the table, leaning down to place a kiss against his mother's cheek, to which she returned one to his. "Does that help you find your answer, Darling?" She asked him as he straightened up.

"I do not know yet, but I will reflect on it."

"What are you going to do about your wife?"

"I will decide soon, but not at the moment." Jareth sighed, feeling no more sure than before.

"How about you send the boys to me for a little while, just while you figure things out. You need not over stress yourself, Darling."

Jareth thought about it for a minute. "Very well," he sighed, relenting on this point.

Kaleen gave him a very pleased smile before taking another sip and setting down her cup once more. She stood up and Mavid did so too so they could go. Jareth kissed his mother once more in farewell before heading towards the door, Mavid following behind. Mavid placing a kiss against her cheek too, receiving one in kind. "Take care of him and yourself, Sweet Boy," Kaleen told him.

Mavid gave her a reassuring smirk before trotting along after Jareth.

X

It had been the changeling. It had to have been the changeling. That was the first conclusion that Sarah had come to and nothing else made sense. Jareth had told her long ago that a changeling had taken her place in this world, but it had managed to _destroy_ her place in this world as well. It had been the one that had done everything that they were accusing her of doing, everything they were punishing her for doing. She had done none of it though, and what was worse was that she had nothing to convince anyone of that fact. What could she say? That a changeling switched places with her from the Underground and did everything while wearing her face.

No. that would just change her route from prison so some sort of mental health institution where she would be locked away and forgotten about with crowds of people that suffered from real issues.

She was currently on a guarded bus, on her way to prison from her initial hearing. She didn't think this was an elaborate trick anymore. This was the real thing, and even though it had been about two weeks since she had first been dragged to jail, her mind was still reeling from everything that had happened and how quickly it had all happened.

She had had a mental breakdown in the middle of the interrogation room to the point they had had to give her a powerful sedative, which had put her into such a severe panic attack she had blacked out and woken up in a holding cell specifically designed for prisoners that had potential to hurt themselves or others. She had been strapped into a rolling chair that was basically a cross between a wheelchair and straight-jacket so she was completely immobile. She had never felt so scared in her life and all she could think about where the photos they had shown her and claimed were of her father's body.

It had been hours and hours till she had calmed down enough for them to wheel her back into the interrogation room so they could continue.

Once there they kept asking her to go over with them what she had done that night, but she hadn't been able to tell them anything. All she could say was that she hadn't done it. They had proceeded to tell her just what they thought she had done though.

The changeling (or Sarah as far as they were concerned) had written plans down in Sarah's diary for murdering Roger, draining all his bank accounts and forging documents in his name to quit his job and take out his retirement. They had recovered her diary from among the wreckage, just legible enough to be presented as evidence to a court of law. She had managed to do all that, just before brutally and callously murdering Roger while he had been taking his morning shower. They had found the body left in the tub upstairs.

The officers she had talked to had pieced together for her that apparently one of their own deputies, a Marcus Taylor -nicknamed Gopher-, had started dating the changeling after the last time 'Sarah' had been in the station, when he had rescued 'her' from her stepmother trying to kill 'her' and returned 'her' to her father. He had gotten out of his shift early and had stopped by her home to see 'her', taking the changeling by surprise and in a panic she had stabbed him to death too, but that had been between the front door and the front porch. A neighbor had spotted that and called the police station. Dan had been one of the first responders, pulling up just as a fire the changeling had started had really started to take hold of the house. He had gone around the back, just in time to find 'Sarah' trying to make her getaway.

They had caught video of her on another officer's patrol car camera and Sarah had had to sit there and watch as something that looked just like her ran through her backyard, blood-stained kitchen knife in hand, as Officer Dan had rushed up to try to tackle her. The only thing about the creature parading around as her that really struck clearly to Sarah that it wasn't human was the fact that on camera her eyes had been lit up like an animal's in the dark. Nobody else was concerned about that in the least of course; why would they be? She had slashed at him wildly and the knife had caught in his arm. He had screamed like a banshee from the pain and the officer that had pulled up in the cruiser had rushed forward to help Dan. 'Sarah' had caught him off guard, shoving him off balance and he spilled to the ground. She had sprinted away, out of sight of the camera as the second officer had recovered, staying with Dan instead to try to stop the bleeding as he had called over the radio for more backup. She had managed to slip away that night. That had happened about eight months ago, and they hadn't seen her since, until she had shown up right back in her old neighborhood, claiming to have no idea of what had happened or anything they had told her about, but with no explanations of where she had been or what she had been doing.

"Here we are," one of the guards on the bus announced to her, pulling her from her thoughts.

The judge she had seen had deemed that a trial was necessary, which wasn't a surprise to anybody. She wouldn't be allowed any sort of bail, and would have to wait for trial at the state women's prison. It could be years before she ever saw the inside of a courthouse though. With the charges that she was facing, it was unlikely they would find her not guilty, and minimum sentencing was twenty-five years. Maximum was the death penalty. In the mean time she was ordered to spend her time waiting in prison. The changeling was still out there somewhere though, probably still wearing her face.

That was what killed her more than anything else, the thought that that creature had been wearing her face when she had killed Sarah's father in cold blood. She felt devastated about the other things too, but they didn't compare to the thought of her father's last thoughts being that Sarah had been the one who had murdered him. She would never have the chance to tell him differently or even just tell him how much she loved him and missed him.

The last few weeks she had done little more than cry. She cried constantly it seemed. She either felt sad or she didn't feel anything at all. It had been weeks of her being held in small rooms twenty-four-seven, unable to move about but for pacing a few feet and constantly kept on watch by either strangers or camera monitors. When she 'behaved' they would move her to a normal holding cell, with bars on the door that anybody walking by could look into and she would have to share with usually one or two others. It was more a punishment than when she was in solitary holding so the second week she had started a fight with one of her cell mates; an older woman that had been picked up for prostitution that had given Sarah a black eye. She still had the bruise around her temple.

She was heart-sick for Toby and Mavias too. She hadn't seen or held them in weeks when she was used to being able to do so everyday. It was a constant ache in her heart and she sometimes woke up from dreams wishing that she was still holding them. To a lesser extent, she even had moments where she missed Jareth. Everyone here looked at her like she was the coldest bitch they had ever crossed paths with. Everyone here believed that she had killed her father and supposed boyfriend, that she deserved everything she was getting and more. One of the women she had shared a cell with for a night recognized her face from the local news and cussed her up and down, telling Sarah that the death penalty was too humane for her and that if there was any justice in the world one of the women in prison would ass rape her with a rusty shank for what she had done.

She wasn't back in the Aboveground.

She was in hell.

The bus stopped and Sarah tensed as the doors swung open and the two guards up front held their shotguns across their chests. "Let's go," one of them instructed her. She didn't argue, didn't dare even resist. As far as they were concerned, she had killed a cop. They would probably welcome the opportunity. She quickly reached up to the back of the seat in front of her to pull herself up, the cuffs hanging off her wrists jingling ominously. There was a chain hanging down between them, connected to a pair of cuffs on her ankles. Walking was a slow and awkward process. She had to pretty much be carried down the bus steps by the two guards.

Sarah looked around her to see that the prison was huge, bigger than Jareth's castle and even more ominous looking with guards all over the place. It was out in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by grass plains so you could see nothing around them for miles and the weather was horribly hot and humid. There were many woman out in the yard already, on the other side of two huge fences that were topped with jungles of barbed wire loops. They stared out at her like animals in a cage and Sarah felt fear at the knowledge that she would soon be mixed in among them, likely even for the rest of her life. She tried not to look afraid though, even when the taunts started to fly.

"As soon as you is in this gate you belonging to me, Princess!"

"What the fuck you looking at, White Meat?"

"What's your name? Don't you fucking ignore me you pious cunt! Hey!"

"That's right come meet your new mama you ho."

"I'll have you down on your knees in no time, slut."

"Best be remembering my face ho, because you're gonna be my new bitch!"

Every one of them was screaming at her, calling her every name in the book. She couldn't understand the majority of them, but the few screams that did reach her ears clearly made her want to start shaking all over. It was the hardest thing to hide her fear as the guards moved her away from the gate, towards a prisoner entrance.

"Don't you fucking walk away, Princess!" someone screamed at her from behind the fence, sending another shiver down her spine.

"Oh they like you," one of the guards laughed, clearly amused.

They moved her through the receiving lobby, where more women were sitting in benches watching local news on a little TV in a cage on the wall. They didn't scream at her, but they did give her unnerving looks. They were new like her, waiting to be processed and added to the prison. Just like she would be.

The guards shoved her down into one of the open seats on the benches and left her side so they could go check with the reception desk and check her in.

One of the women who had been watching her got up from her seat and made her way over to sit down right next to Sarah, who only wished to be left alone. She didn't make eye contact with the woman, trying to keep a wary eye on her out of her peripheral vision. It was a heavier woman, but shorter than Sarah, with a solid stocky build. Her face was worn down with wrinkles and she had severe bags under her bloodshot eyes. Her hair was shaved very close to her head and Sarah had to wonder for a moment if it was actually a man, but there was no real question as the woman's breasts were easily both bigger than Sarah's head.

"First time in?" the woman asked her, even her voice was bordering on the masculine side and Sarah could see her eyes skimming over her body even with the baggy prison scrubs.

Sarah simply nodded her head, unsure what else to do. She glanced over for the guards but they were not concerned with her in the least.

"I was here for six years last time, released early on good behavior. That was only three months ago, now I'm back again," she laughed like it was some hilarious joke. The woman held a hand out for Sarah to shake. "Cee-Cee Banks, aggravated assault with intent. Everyone calls me 'Mama Banks'."

Sarah didn't know what else to do, so she shook the woman's hand limply to not seem rude. "Sarah Williams… assorted murders and assaults."

Mama Banks laughed hard at that. "You, murder and assaults? Shit! Well we've had smaller bits come in for greater crimes."

Sarah tensed again when Mama snaked her meaty arm over the back of Sarah's chair.

"Well don't be too scared, Princess. It's the easiest way to get yourself in trouble, and right now you look pants-pissing-freaked. Just follow the rules and you'll get through all right."

Sarah glanced over at the large board bolted to the wall that stated :Prison Rules: but Mama Banks laughed at her again. "Not those, Princess, the rules enforced by the women here. Those are the ones you need to follow first and foremost. For instance, if one of those guards tell you to stand up, but I order you to stay sitting… what are you going to do?"

Sarah felt sweat start to form on her brow. "I… I sit…"

"See, you'll do fine," Mama laughed again, the wrinkles cracking across her skin sharply. "You can call me Mama from this point on. You're one of my girls now. When we get in I'll introduce you to some of your new sisters. Families are the only way to stay safe in here, so you're lucky your already part of one."

Mama Bank's hand squeezed Sarah's shoulder, making her jump. She turned to see if the guards were watching, but they weren't. "I- I have to go to the bathroom please," she called out to them. This caused Mama to laugh again.

One of the guards let out a sigh and came back over to her, Mama Banks removing her arm from Sarah's seat. The guard helped her up, leaving her legs cuffed even though he unlocked her wrist shackles. She would have to take her arms out of the top of her jumpsuit to even get it removed enough to go to the bathroom. She carried the top part of her shackles with her, thankful that for the first time in weeks she would get to use the bathroom in private, probably for the last time. Until she was assigned to a cell she could use the private one in the receiving lobby. The guard escorted her over to it, checking for her to make sure it was empty before letting her past, standing outside the door to wait so he could put her cuffs back on when she came out.

"It may be a minute," Sarah warned him, her cheeks red. She didn't actually have to do anything, but wanted the time to try and collect herself. She looked at herself in the mirror over the sink, looking pale and sad in her bright orange one piece jumpsuit. Her temple was still bruised from her fight last week. Her long brown hair was pulled back in a simple pony tail and her eyes looked on the verge of tears. It was fitting because she really was on the verge of tears, again. She didn't look like herself at all. She looked like a classic mug shot. Someone you never turn your back on or leave kids around. This was worse than anything she had ever been forced to go though and she started apologizing to whatever God or higher power she might have pissed off to the point that she had to go through this. She leaned forward and placed her head against the cool mirror, burying her face in her hands as she tried to keep her sobs quiet enough so the guard outside wouldn't hear her.

X

Jareth took the first opportunity that had been afforded him after watching Sarah within his crystals for the better part of the last few days. For the first time she was alone near a mirror that he could contact her through, so he was quick to seize his chance. Rushing to his room to the mirrored wall in the bathroom, he placed his gloved hands against the surface of the mirrored wall and concentrated on Sarah, whispering her name under his breath three times. There was a ripple in the reflection but slowly his image faded away and Sarah's came forward, just the top of her visible to him, her head pressed against the other side of the mirror as she cried very softly.

It was enough to make him want to reach out to her, but he refrained, and not just because he couldn't touch her.

"Sarah."

Her head snapped up fast enough that neck injury was a possibility, her eyes wide and her face one of shock as she stared back at him. "J-Jareth…"

He had been hoping to gauge from her reaction if he should in fact bring her back to him or not, and though she didn't look angry to see him, she didn't look relieved either. She just looked shocked to see him.

"I can't believe it." she whispered, sadness spreading over her face.

Jareth ignored her sadness, uninterested in it after all she had put him through. "Not even a word of good-bye, what a cruel girl you are. Though one can hardly be bothered by such trivial things in pursuit of their dreams. Your dream has certainly come true now, has it not, Sarah? All those times you begged to return home. I had no idea that the real problem you had here with your 'gilded cage' was the fact that it was gilded. This one probably suits you more with that being the case. I suppose I should congratulate you." he sneered, knowing from watching her just how much of a dream come true this really was for her. He could not suppress his initial scorn for her though, feeling more than jaded by her taking leave of him. For all the times she had fought him and cruelly shoved away anything he tried to give her in favor of her ideals of how much better the Aboveground was he could not help but feel just a bit of cruel satisfaction at her predicament. He was half tempted to just gloat over her and then leave her be for all the trouble she had been for him.

There was that other part of him though, that still very much viewed her as his. She was his wife. His signet ring still resided on her finger. She belonged to him and his child.

Tears slipped from her eyes as she stared back at him in the mirror, "Please… don't be mean to me right now," she sniffed pitifully, all the fight worn out of her. "Jareth I'm in jail, they think I killed my dad. The changeling murdered him… and another person, and did a lot of horrible things," she whimpered.

Her tears pulled at his heart, but he steeled it against her. "That is unfortunate," he simply confirmed. Changelings were nasty and dangerous things, something Carrie had known even before inviting them into the Aboveground. Apparently the only thing more dangerous was desperation.

Sarah leaned against the glass again. "I don't know what to do."

Jareth could not stop the words before they spilled out. "Come back to me."

Her eyes closed and she slumped even more against the glass. She did not answer at first, just stood there as if she had fainted, or maybe gone to sleep. "Sarah-

She jumped suddenly when there was a knock on the door behind her. "I'm sorry, I'll just be another minute," she called out, looking terrified of what was waiting on the other side. She turned back to Jareth then, her eyes scanning over him as she weighed his offer.

"It's not fair," she simply said as she met his eyes, looking very tired of it all.

Jareth could not help but smile wistfully. "No it is not, but that is the way it is."

She simply let out a humorless laugh and nodded her head in agreement to that. "Yeah, I guess that's true."

X

Sarah watched through the mirror as Jareth crossed his arms over his chest, looking very put out as he stared her down solemnly. "I will take you away Sarah, but only if you ask me to. By doing so you will be acknowledging to yourself that this life I offer you is the one you _wish_ to have. You will follow my rules as I give them to you; and you will perform your duties as a queen, wife, and mother to the best of your abilities. You will either accept here and now that your place is and always will be with me or I will leave you to the mercies of what was once your world, however few there may be."

Sarah looked up at him, considering his words. This was it. She was out of options here. The only two she had were staring her in the face and either way it would be a life sentence. Even so there was little comparison between the two. Torik had once told her that she was lucky to be Jareth's wife, in a different sort of way. Because captive though she was, she was only captive to Jareth, while everyone else answered to her. Torik had been a pet, under the feet of everyone around him, and he had taken his only escape out. That was her spot in this world now. She let out another long sigh and made her decision. She would take her only escape out.

"Alright Jareth. I agree."

His eyes narrowed on her. "Say your right words then, Precious."

Sarah looked back to the door, worried that the guard might burst in as any moment. "I wish the King of the Goblins would come and take me far away from here. Right now."


	46. Chapter 46

Epilogue:

* * *

It had been nearly six moons since she had seen Cleo, the poor girl having been shut away while she was pregnant, but early in the morning Cleo's third baby had been born and they had all been invited to bare witness again. Sarah had been there for the birthing of Cleo and Loki's first two girls, Dalphane and then later Seita. Now they had just finished baring witness to the birth of her third daughter, whom Loki had named Luna. He had been ecstatic of course. Cleo had been happy too, but very tired, understandably. So they had had to keep the visit short, though Cleo and Sarah had made plans to visit with each other soon.

The corset Sarah had worn was terribly uncomfortable, as all the clothing of the birthing witnesses were expected to be in tribute to the birthing mother's pain, digging into her ribs and trying it's best to crush her. She tried hard to sit as still as she could in the carriage though, as moving about only resulted in further agitation. Jareth sat across from her, equally still as he looked out of the small carriage window next to him. There was the smallest smirk about Jareth's lips and she knew he was still glowing off the fact that he had gotten to hold Loki's newest daughter. Sarah glanced outside too but all she could see were clouds as the Pegasus ponies carried them all high up on their way from Loki's manor back to the Devine castle where they would pick up the children and return home to the castle beyond the Goblin City.

"I wonder if Cleo had been hoping for a boy this time," Sarah mused out loud. Perhaps she would ask Cleo about it next time they spoke.

Jareth simply shrugged, continuing to look out the window. "Remember to use your best manners when we arrive, which will be very soon; you were rather slack with them when we dropped the children off."

Sarah didn't know what he could possibly be talking about. She hadn't done anything wrong. She had _thought_ she had been on her best behavior. Ever since she had come back to the Underground all that time ago tensions had been so high with his mother towards her that Sarah was always nervous to so much as hesitate in a curtsy to the higher-ranking queen. She didn't dare to act up around Jareth's mother.

Jareth turned his attention to her now since she had yet to respond to his warning and the briefest hardness flashed through his miss-matched eyes as he addressed her. "Sarah."

She nodded her head in understanding, "Yes, Jareth," she said, giving him the answer she knew he was waiting for. He gave her a nod of approval and acknowledgement, turning his attention back to the window as the carriage began it's decent. That could only mean that they had arrived.

X

The first person to greet them was Jareth's mother, as it was right for the queen to do so with any visitors, and Jareth graced both of his mother's cheeks with kisses, receiving the same from her. She retook her seat after having welcomed him, though eagerly accepted the same greeting from Mavid as he bent to kiss her cheeks as well. "Your Highness," Mavid teased her, being rewarded with a smirk and a soft swat to the cheek from Kaleen. He had been teasing her with that formal title even though he was the only servant she insisted not call her so since two winter seasons ago when Hamold had passed away and she had become Queen Supreme, the acting ruler and matriarch till Toby was at a proper ruling maturity to take over the Labyrinth so Jareth could ascend to the Fae throne in replacement of her.

Sarah was graceful enough as she approached and bent to sweep a quick kiss over one of Kaleen's cheeks, but Kaleen didn't return it, both women seeming relieved despite themselves as Sarah straightened once more. Jareth's mother had proved far less forgiving then he himself had been. She may never say it out loud, but Jareth highly suspected she had greatly favored the idea of saying Sarah had died to save him the utter embarrassment she had almost caused him by running away, accident though it had been. Hamold had never been told and, thankfully, had never found out. They were the only four in the Underground that knew of it; or ever would know.

Kaleen was happy to turn her attention from Sarah back to him. "So tell me about the birthing," Kaleen beamed up at him, the first signs of deeper lines appearing at the corners of her eyes and mouth, "Every detail."

"I was hoping to see my children, Mother," Jareth smirked back, "Mavid can fill you in on the details."

"Dad!"

Jareth looked over to see his son sprinting up to him, his little arms out for a hug even from across the room and his blonde hair bouncing with each step. The child was pretty fast for a six year old and Jareth immediately stooped down to level with him and swooped him up in his arms in an embrace. "I missed you too, tell me all about your day Little Hamold."

There wasn't a chance for it though, as Little Hamold's personal attendant, Marxus, wasn't far behind, wrapping his little elfin body around Jareth's leg in a hug despite the look of reproach that he received from Mavid for being so informal at the Devine Castle where they were supposed to be actively practicing their manners and skills taught by their now full time tutors Dr. Dee and Yaxly. Jareth stooped again, shifting Hamold in his arms so he could stroke Marxus's pointed ear affectionately; the white-haired elf child having been purchased shortly after birth for Hamold from a poor elfin couple.

Sarah was right behind him, ready for the handoff when Little Hamold reached out for her. "Mommy!"

She beamed at him and kissed his cheeks like she hadn't seen him for years. "Hey there little man, did you miss me?"

"Yes!"

Jareth moved Marxus gently from his leg over to Sarah, where the little elf latched onto her skirts instead, causing her to chuckle and stoop down, setting Hamold down to give Marxus his hug.

While she greeted them affectionately Jareth anxiously moved further on through an alcove into the back part of the room where he knew his other child would be. His eyes first fell to the crib against the wall, then over to Tallia, whom was quickly packing up the baby things now that they had returned to pick up the children. "Oh, your majesty, I just have to get a few more things together and then we can leave at your leisure." the nurse maid assured him, careful not to turn the scarred side of her face toward him.

"Is she asleep?"

"She is, but you may wake her if you wish. She should be about rested by now."

At Sarah's request, Jareth had brought Tallia back into service as a nanny during Little Hamold's and Marxus's toddler years. It had seemed to please both Sarah and Mavid very much, but for very different reasons. It had only made sense to keep her on when Sarah became pregnant with Jareth's daughter.

He went to the spare crib and looked down at the babe inside, all smooth pale skin and dark curls on her little head. She was fast asleep, but behind those eyelids he knew there to be a beautiful pair of mis-matched eyes, one green and one brown. He reached down into the crib and ran his hand over her warm little cheek, marveling at her smooth baby skin before carefully lifting her up out of the crib. "Come to your pa-pa, Precious." She scrunched her face and fussed a little, but settled down once more once he had her against his chest, held carefully in the crook of his arm. Her eyes cracked open a little and he couldn't help but smile down at her. "Hello, precious thing."

"How is she doing?" Sarah's voice asked softly from over his shoulder.

"She was great while you two were out, went down for her nap with no fuss and drank all her wolf's milk. Didn't you, sweet girl?" Tallia beamed, packing up the last of her things.

Jareth turned so Sarah could see her too. She was now free of little boys, Mavid currently bundled down with them as little Hamold sat upon his shoulders, trying to touch the ceiling that was still too high up for him as Marxus followed along behind, one of his little fists clutching at the back of Mavid's vest hem, his free thumb planted in his mouth. "Are we ready?" Mavid inquired.

"Leaving already? Really Jareth you just got here." Kaleen sighed, entering the back room last to stand by Mavid and the boys. She ran a hand down the back of Marxus's shoulder length hair idly.

"It can not be helped," he sighed. Toby and Mavias had opted to remain in the goblin castle this time rather than staying with Kaleen while Jareth, Sarah, and Mavid were away. Their first time being left with the kingdom under their rule. While Dee, Yaxly, and Aboris were still there as well, none of them had true say over either boy. Jareth prayed the castle did not burn down before he returned. It would be a nearly impossible task considering it was made of stone. When Toby put his mind to something though…

"Come on then," Jareth coaxed, carrying his daughter Precious with him as he fought to hide his anxiety at getting back home.

X

The castle still stood, as did the goblin city. That was a decent sign. Sarah could see out of the corner of her eye that Jareth was turning his head every which way in the halls as they made their way through, inspecting everything as they went for anything out of place or disturbed. She wanted him to just relax, but at the same time she felt just as anxious. She knew Toby and Mavias as well as Jareth did, possibly more so, and knew that when left to their own devices they could get pretty rambunctious. Lately friction had started to build up between Toby and Jareth at times, which was probably because Toby was starting to come into his own as a future ruler and this was a castle and a kingdom that already had a king. Sarah had learned the hard way a long time ago with Jareth that a castle couldn't function properly with two kings residing in it.

Toby was far from being mature enough to rule on his own though.

"Tallia, put the children down for the night please. Make sure that Precious drinks her bottle and if the boys want some juice they may have it, but just a bit," Jareth instructed.

"Yes, your highness."

Jareth kissed his daughter good night, passing her over to Sarah so she could do the same. She happily took her and kissed her forehead and cheeks. She was a gorgeous babe, that was for sure. Little Hamold had been a gorgeous babe too of course, and she couldn't help but feel immensely proud of both of them. They were hers, and that thought alone made her feel warm all over. "Sweet dreams Precious," Sarah whispered against her cheek lovingly before handing her off to Tallia. Mavid stooped down onto one knee before her so she could pull Hamold off of his shoulders.

"I'm not even tired yet!" Hamold insisted, his lip jutting out in a pout as she balanced him on her hip.

Sarah couldn't help but laugh at how cute he was, placing a kiss against his cheek. "I know honey, but the more you sleep the faster you'll grow big and strong. You were just saying the other day that you couldn't wait to be grown up like your daddy and Mavid are."

Hamold thought about it for a minute. "I'd rather stay up."

Sarah laughed again because she couldn't help herself, kissing his cheek once more. "Say goodnight to your father and I'll be up to check on you later."

She gave his hand a final squeeze as he ran around her to intercept Jareth and try to convince him to let them stay up before she turned her attention to Marxus. The little elf was very shy in personality, but so loving. He wrapped his arms around the back of her neck tightly and she returned it, pressing her lips against the side of his head and running her fingertips over the long since healed brand at the back of his neck. He was just like another one of her own. She enjoyed his shyness and quiet nature very much, probably because she knew he would have to get past it to be an effective attendant so the knowledge that it was fleeting made it even more dear; and he would certainly get past it, if not on his own then with Mavid dragging him kicking and screaming through it as he had done with his own son Mavias once upon a time.

Dee and Yaxly did their jobs very well, but in the end Mavias and Marxus becoming extraordinary attendants rested mainly on Mavid's shoulders just as Toby becoming a great king rested on Jareth's and to a lesser extent hers. Unless they found kingdoms of their own or married into one Hamold and Precious would stay a prince and princess throughout their lives.

After Jareth wished Marxus good night as well the boys wish Mavid a good night, and rushed back to Tallia. Tallia led all three kids with her away to the nursery, where the boys would stay for a few more winters yet, and Precious for many more. Toby and Mavias had moved into their own wing of the castle long ago.

With the youngest headed off to bed the three of them continued on to search out Toby and Mavias, or possibly even Dee or Yaxly to find out how things had gone while they were away.

It was actually Aboris that happened upon them in the hallway first though, welcoming them back briefly, obviously troubled by something.

"Where is my son?" Jareth demanded of him bluntly, his voice full of impatience.

"That's just it your majesty, Yaxly told them they shouldn't, but I believe they currently are… entertaining guests in your throne room, though I can not be sure they are still there as Master Toby ordered everyone to leave them be."

"And what of _my orders_ to report to me if either of them stepped one toe out of line?" Jareth hissed, his anger building up.

"But your majesty we tried," Aboris insisted, looking even more concerned now. "Yaxly sent you a crystal yesterday. You never received it?"

Sarah got a shiver down her spine at the look she saw on Jareth's face at this news. Somehow the boys must have intercepted the message. "Jareth-"

"Silence. What else has he been up to in my absence?" Jareth demanded of Aboris, ignoring Sarah for the moment.

"Young Master Toby has neglected his lessons and has taken up loafing about." Aboris confessed, though he didn't seem at all happy to be the one having to do it. "Dee and Yaxly could probably tell you more than I your majesty."

"You may go." Jareth bit out; darkly muttering something under his breath along the lines of "The second my back is turned…".

Aboris took his chance and hurried out of the way and down the hall past the three of them. Jareth also wasted no time and started his march toward the throne room, Mavid right on his heels and Sarah rushing to keep up, hating her high heeled shoes and wondering why Toby seemed to insist on pushing Jareth's buttons like this more and more. "Jareth please calm down first." she implored, trotting along to keep up with his long strides. _Darn his long legs_!

They reached the throne room in no time, all three halting in the doorway and Sarah stumbled back in shock, slamming her eyes closed. It was too late, however, as what she had seen was burned into her brain as though it were playing on the backs of her eyelids. Toby and Mavias were entertaining guests all right, two females that Sarah vaguely recalled as being daughters of fae lords. Her eyes burned with the vision of seeing Mavias nuzzling at one female's breasts that had been freed from her bodice against the wall while Toby sat upon Jareth's throne, receiving pleasure from the other female. He had been facing towards them when they had entered and his face had snapped from ecstasy to shock and fear. "Fuck!" she heard him shout while her mind reeled.

"Oh My Gods!" a female screamed, the sounds of shuffling around and scrambling for clothing ensuing.

Sarah moved herself back against the wall in the hallway so she wouldn't have to see anything else until things were in a more decent state.

"Leave now, the both of you!" Jareth bellowed, he and Mavid marching further into the room.

There was even more shuffling about and Sarah could only let out a sigh of bitter disappointment in the both of her boys as two half dressed young females tore past her out of the throne room and down the hall as though their skirts were on fire behind them. They didn't bother stopping to curtsey to her as protocol would have demanded, but it was just as well. Sarah knew what would no doubt happen next and there was nothing she could do to stop it or to help the two young fae males. After all, there were consequences for every action. A hard lesson to learn, but a valuable one to remember; as she herself had had no choice but to come to understand.

She let out a long sigh and waited for the sounds of fabric rustling and cursing to die down in the throne room. Once it had she allowed her eyes to open and turned back to the room, thankful that now both boys were more dressed than not again, though Toby and Jareth looked equally outraged with each other.

This wasn't the first time Toby had been caught having girls over when he wasn't allowed unfortunately, he was practically a grown man after all, though he had certainly upped the ante by doing so in Jareth's throne room, especially _on_ his throne. Toby had grown handsomely, looking much like his father with his blonde hair wildly growing out of his head, having lost the curls in childhood his strands were now stick straight, though shorter than Jareth's. The baby-fat had long since left him and he was nothing but lean muscle wrapped over a tall frame. A pendent just like Jareth's hung from a heavy chain around his neck always and his white vest and leggings only emphasized how pale his alabaster skin was. His lip was curled in anger and he matched Jareth's and Mavid's intense glares without a single flinch.

Behind him a ways, Mavias was rushing to finish lacing up his own vest. The dark green color complimenting the olive skin he had inherited from his long-deceased mother and the jet black hair that was cut short all over so his branded neck was always in easy view to those around him. The muscles that were starting to really build up in his arms flexed on their own as he worked at the fastenings in haste.

"You needn't bother, Mavias," Jareth informed him coolly. "You may as well remove your vest once more."

Mavias's blue eyes took on a new look of concern as they fixed on the floor in front of him and a shudder ran through his spine. Toby's glare only intensified at Jareth.

Sarah looked to Jareth and Mavid, but both were absolutely stern in their stance.

"Mavid."

Jareth's use of his name was command enough for Mavid to produce Jareth's riding crop for him, handing the object of discipline over without a word.

"Mavias," Jareth further commanded, pointing to the spot on the ground before him. Set on the task at hand.

Sarah's heart clenched, as it always did when this happened. Not only for Toby and Mavias, but for Jareth and Mavid too. She knew from experience that this wasn't something that was easy for any of them, but just the same it was necessary. She often was the one that ended up nursing all their wounds afterward. There were some pains that Aboris couldn't help with in his vast wisdom of magical medicines and cures.

Mavias moved forward to heed Jareth's command, but Toby stepped between them. "Don't."

Jareth's eyes flashed and he struck the crop hard against the wall next to him, the sharp crack that echoed off the walls causing Sarah to jump and both young males flinched. "Challenge my authority again and I will turn this crop on your own hide regardless of the scars." Jareth warned his eldest son. "All marks he bares are the results of your ill behavior and misguided decisions. Stand down now before this becomes another one."

Toby opened his mouth to no doubt talk back but this time Sarah was the one to cut him off. "Toby," she hissed in warning, hoping to save them all a lot of trouble and Mavias a lot of pain.

At her beckoning Toby turned away from Jareth to look to her instead, the glare replaced with simply a look of pleading for help or a little slack. She only wished she could do something to help, but she knew as well as he did that there was nothing she could do for either him nor Mavias. Realizing defeat, Toby lowered his head and said no more, refusing to look anyone in the eye and opting for a staring contest with the floor instead. Mavias did much the same as he shrugged off his top, baring his skin as he padded his way across the room to the spot that Jareth had first indicated. He turned his back to Jareth and Mavid, baring the scars striking across his skin there from past whippings that stretched from his lower back up to the brand on the back of his neck.

Sarah's heart ached a little each time she saw them. Mavias still didn't have near as many as his father bared yet, but the majority of them he had received within the last few seasons due to Toby's unwillingness to still adhere to Jareth's rules and boundaries, and he would no doubt receive more to come if Toby didn't change his act. The first time Mavias had ever received a whipping from Jareth had been when he was about twelve winters old and Toby had used his magic to aid him in throwing a mega fit when he had been told to go to bed early for throwing food at his baby brother. He had managed to put a few cracks in the walls with his magic flying everywhere and it had been very dangerous. Jareth had easily been able to restrain his child's magic, but it had been one of the hardest nights Sarah had ever had to endure. It had been close to two winters before Toby had acted out in such a way to warrant such a punishment again.

Sarah steeled herself as best she could as Jareth brought the crop up, but still flinched when he cracked it down over Mavias's back. The young male let out a little gasp, but held his stance firm. Toby watched closely as Jareth continued with the punishment, knowing if he looked away it would be worse for Mavias. The pain was even more apparent on his face than it was on Mavias's.

Jareth brought the crop down in a particularly sharp blow one last time and the skin gave, cracking open so that little beads of blood welled up all across the welt. Sarah felt like she could feel her heart tear right along with Mavias's skin.

Jareth took a moment, his stern expression unwavering as he turned his attention to Toby, holding the crop out to him. "Now you."

All the blood drained from Toby's face but he stepped forward regardless, taking the whip from Jareth. Jareth did this most times, having Toby himself give the final blow to further sink in the point to his son of consequences and responsibility. Sarah could still only watch as Toby's hand shook and he refused to make eye contact with his father. He brought the whip up and struck it down hard, making a mark parallel to Jareth's that also cracked open just a little. He had to be sure to strike hard, otherwise Jareth would take it back and strike harder.

Mavias let out a hiss and his breathing was heavy at this point, as was Toby's and the skin on Mavias's back glowed red all over from the pain and sweat collected on his brow.

"Go to Aboris now," Jareth ordered.

There was no argument from either of the younger males now, both turning and exiting the room as quickly as they could to seek healing from the elf.

As soon as they were gone all three adults let out a heavy sigh at the same time.

"Damn it," Jareth cussed, though he only sounded exhausted at this point.

Jareth and Sarah's attentions snapped to Mavid when he suddenly let out the smallest of chuckles despite the strenuous situation.

At the glares he received Mavid composed himself a bit but held his smirk. "I apologize, but it just reminded me of a few of the times you and I got caught with females at the Devine Castle. I can't speak for my son, but I know I came to have a particular fondness for those scars over all others I received."

He managed to ease a little of the tension in the room and Jareth even smirked a little at that. Sarah fought not to roll her eyes. She lost the battle and did it anyway, but she closed her eyes first so they couldn't see.

"I'm going to go check on the children," Sarah informed them, but didn't make it even a step out of the room.

"No, I want you to join me in a ride," Jareth informed her, leaving no room for argument. "You may see to the babes later."

Sarah didn't try to argue, merely nodding her head.

X

It was cool outside and the Labyrinth was starting to turn dim as the sun sank behind the mountains. It was quiet, peaceful. A moment that Jareth had grown to treasure more and more as time went by. The Pegasus ponies grazed a short distance away from the willow tree in the garden, just adding to the calm of the night as little fairies flew around the horse's heads, braiding their manes and stringing flowers into their tails. Jareth laid on his back on the grassy hill, his eyes closed as he rested and tried to forget about the lashing he had just had to give to one of his boys, but thought instead about when his father used to deal out the same punishments to Mavid. He wondered if maybe it had hurt his father as much as it did him; Hamold had never let it show, but then neither did he. Toby's pain showed though, each time. Jareth knew exactly how his eldest son felt, but he also knew how valuable the lessons that came from such punishments were.

In order to one day be a good and competent ruler of a kingdom there had to be a deep and thorough understanding that all actions have consequences. Instead of the attendant suffering, however, at that point it would be the kingdom that would suffer for it and the king would suffer all the worse for it than if it was only him that paid the consequences. There was also the incredible hardship of staying as calm and poised as possible when things were going horribly wrong. Most important was the point of taking responsibility for the consequences and setting things to right by paying the price, demonstrated by the offender carrying out the whipping themselves. Perhaps one could argue it was a cruel practice, but it had been firmly in place throughout the generations because it worked.

The sound of a soft sigh next to him peaked his curiosity enough to encourage him to crack one of his eyes open, looking to Sarah who sat watching the horses from at his side on the hill. She looked very tired, much like he felt. Jareth could hardly remember the last time he had had to administer a serious punishment on her, something he was very pleased with as he took no joy in it. It was very rare these days that she required more than a warning or two for something she said or did.

She shifted her weight from one side to the other and gripped through her dress to the corset, giving it a sharp jerk to the side like it was annoying her.

"Come here," Jareth beckoned, sitting up and motioning to the spot right in front of him.

She moved her corset around once more, pulling herself up to her feet and going over to Jareth, allowing him to take her hand and move her around in front of him where he directed her to face away from him and sit down between his legs. Once seated Jareth started unlacing the back of her dress, his fingers nimbly going down the bindings in record time and then he reached past the dress to the corset underneath, loosening those laces too so that she had some room to breath. Before he had even finished she was letting out sighs of relief.

"Thanks," she murmured, relaxing back against his chest.

Jareth wrapped his arms around her, resting his chin on her shoulder.

"Sometimes I forget how old the boys are," she sighed wistfully. "I guess it never really occurred to me they would ever become old enough to be sneaking around with females like that. Doing things like that."

"They are practically adults," Jareth reminded her, "Physically anyway. Mentally however…"

Sarah simply nodded her head. "I know that. Yet… I still forget that, all the time. They're still my baby boys. I still remember carrying them both around in my arms so clearly I could swear it was only yesterday."

Jareth placed a kiss against the side of her head, pleased when she turned her neck so that she could kiss him back. He had waited so long for moments like these, but they seemed worth it now.

Jareth wrapped his arms around her and pulled her over him as he laid back on the ground, Sarah twisting so that she could straddle his waist to be more comfortable, a position that Jareth found very comfortable indeed as his body started to respond from her groin being lined up with his despite their clothing.

Sarah must have noticed because she glanced down and her face went red. Jareth couldn't help but laugh. "All this time and all our children and you still blush for me?"

At his laughter her blush only intensified and even in the dim light he could see the redness of her skin. The thing he knew about her was that when she got like this it was always a full body blush, and he wanted to see more of it. Jareth reached up and hooked his fingers into the front of her dress and corset, pulling her down closer to him for a kiss. She let him, but then she had learned long ago that she couldn't stop him. With her on all fours over top of him he scooped her breasts out from the corset so that they hovered over top of him, free for his viewing. Sarah held herself up, relaxed enough in her stature as he leaned up and kissed her deeply, his libido causing his breathing to deepen. Sarah returned his kiss and when he broke it off she gasped as though he had left her breathless, panting a bit herself as he moved down further so give her breasts the same treatment he had given her lips.

"Jareth," she sighed as his lips touched the bud of her nipple, his strong arms pulled down on her lower back, bringing her hips closer to his so that he could grind against her, more than ready to be inside of her.

Jareth flipped them over so that she ended up on her back beneath him. His hands had just started fishing for the hems of her skirts so that he could push them out of the way when Sarah suddenly started to sit up, putting her hands against his shoulders to still his movements. "Jareth, you know I don't care to do this out here. Can't we go inside?"

"I want you _now_ ," Jareth insisted, still focused on her skirts.

"We're not exactly alone here," she huffed, looking off to something to her right.

Jareth followed her glare and saw that a handful of the tiny fairies that had been grooming the horses for fun had stopped and seemed to have found them far more amusing, pointing at Jareth and Sarah and laughing amongst themselves as they started mocking sexual positions with each other in jest, hovering in the air on their little silken wings. Jareth produced a crystal and tossed it in the fairies' direction, watching as it turned itself into a hurricane-like gust of wind and blew the screaming fairies far from their view.

"Easily taken care of," he smirked, turning back to Sarah to finish what he had started.

"I would still rather do this inside," she told him, her eyes big and pleading that he'd give in to her wishes.

Jareth ignored her, sure he could bring her around if he continued. Sarah reach for his wrists again to slow him down but Jareth shoved her hands away and pushed on her shoulder so that she would lay back down on the hillside. This time Sarah stayed down, letting out a final huff of frustration as she frowned up at the sky.

Jareth didn't have any further patience tonight. It had been a long day and dealing with his eldest son had been very frustrating. He needed to just relieve those frustrations right now. Without Sarah hindering him any longer Jareth was able to easily flip her skirts up to her waist, getting a grand view of her long legs and uncovered flesh. He freed himself just as quickly and gripped the backs of her knees, pushing them towards her chest so that she would be better angled to accept him. He entered her without resistance, her flesh slick for him and he slid into her with ease, his breath catching in his throat and his eyes rolling back at how hot she was around him. It sent pleasure shooting from the base of his sac to the very tips of his fingers and toes. Sarah let out a moan at the invasion and another pang of ecstasy rocked him.

He moved her legs to his shoulders and clamped down on her hips, moving in and out of her slowly a few times to evenly coat himself with her slickness, his knees digging grooves into the earth beneath him. Jareth leaned forward over her, bending her body almost in half as far as she could stand it and sped up his pace till he was slamming against her, watching her face contort with pleasure beneath him till her breasts caught his attention once more. They moved along with the force of his thrusting and compelled him to balance his weight against her legs so that he could grope her without crushing her, kneading her breasts as gently as he could since she was still a bit tender from the pregnancy. She wasn't breast feeding as Precious had rejected her milk in favor of wolf's milk bottles. All the same he had to still be gentle though.

Sarah started to pant harder and her hands wrapped around his wrists. She wasn't pushing him away, but rather just held onto him, her nails digging into his flesh.

Jareth released one of her breasts in favor to reach down between her legs, keeping up his pace as his fingers brushed against her sensitive bead. It cause her hips to buck as she gasped in pleasure and encouraged Jareth to keep it up, his fingers matching his thrusts. The sound of her moans intensifying was like music in his ears and all of it went straight to his groin, the pleasure shifting to a tight coil of pressure deep down and when she gasped his name he came undone and let out a harsh shout as the pressure snapped and exploded out of him, shooting his seed out against her cervix.

After the release all the energy of his body deserted him and it was all he could do to catch himself from collapsing onto his wife beneath him as she gasped for breath from their excursion, equally exhausted. Jareth managed to roll off of her, settling on his stomach on the ground next to her, one of his arms still draped possessively over her shoulders. Sarah shoved her skirts back down before settling back against the grass.

Jareth couldn't help but smirk at the somewhat sour look on her face. She might of enjoyed herself enough in the moment, but was likely back to being a bit cross with him for ignoring her request to wait.

 _She will get over it,_ he mused.

X

"How are they?" Sarah asked.

Aboris closed the door to the room behind him as he joined her in the hall. "As fine as they usually are. Mavias's skin usually heals quickly enough and I have him slathered down with healing salves. The bleeding was very minimal and stopped shortly after the whipping. He's calm enough, but you know how Toby gets, fire in his stomach and little sense in his head. He's been cursing out the king left and right."

Sarah let out a long sigh, tilting her head up just a little higher. "Thank you Aboris, that will be all."

Aboris bowed his head to her and headed down the hallway back to his rooms.

Sarah took another breath to steady herself and opened the door to Toby's room, knocking on the frame as she did so. Mavias's room was across the way but it was common after a whipping that Toby had Mavias stay in his own room for the night while he healed. Sarah knew it was because Toby cared for Mavias, but it was likely also because Toby felt some guilt when it happened.

Toby's room was small, a little smaller than hers and decorated with tattered grey curtains and bed sheets and carved-bone furniture, most of the space was occupied by the wide-set bed, upon which Mavias was laying on his stomach, his back covered with gauze from Aboris. Toby was standing next to the bed, his hands on his hips and a sour sneer on his face. They both turned their heads to the door as Sarah made her way inside. Mavias settled back down on the bed once he saw it was her. Toby had initially been given a very large stately room from Jareth, but he had sought this one out himself further into the castle from where everyone else slept and Mavias had followed, taking up the equally small room across the way.

"May I come in?" Sarah asked out of politeness.

Toby nodded his head, crossing his arms over his stomach. She had never been turned away, coming to see them most nights regardless if there had been a whipping or not. No matter how old she still liked to say good night to them before bed and sometimes tell them stories.

She went over to the bed and sat down on the edge next to Mavias, carefully lifting the corner of the gauze on his back to inspect the marks for herself. Aboris had been right of course, they were minor at best and would heal quickly. She went to tape the gauze back down, but the solid matter of Mavias's back suddenly shifted to little more than air and her hand dropped down almost to the bed beneath him, startling her momentarily. "Mavias!" she scolded as he laughed into his pillow at her, a small smile even pulling at the corners of Toby's lips when Sarah brought her hand down on Mavias's backside in a swat for using his magic to startle her like that. He knew better of course, but he was something of a trickster by nature, nothing on Loki's level of course, but he had a humor about him.

Mavias wasn't able to replace his form with a void of darkness like his father could, which Jareth had been disappointed about at first, but he wasn't without his own special magical skill. He could selectively convert sections of his body from solid matter to something that objects could pass through without hurting him. Sometimes during sparing practice he would employ this talent so that punches or weapons couldn't touch him, though he never dared do it during a punishment.

"Sorry," he laughed, clearly not all that sorry as he shifted around a little bit on the bed.

Sarah put the gauze back down and this time his back held up under her touch. "They're looking good," she informed him, though Toby let out a snort.

"Father is a fucking barbarian," Toby snarled, arms firmly crossed across his chest.

"Toby you know you shouldn't have had girls over here, and it was vulgar to have them in the throne room like that. What choice did you leave him?" Sarah scolded him. "And how did you stop Yaxly's crystals to us from going out? What if there had been a real emergency he had to inform us about?"

Toby rolled his eyes. "Everything is an emergency to him. I knew he sent a crystal out because the fool told me he would, so I just flew out and grabbed it." Like his father and grandfather before him he had also inherited the ability to take on the form of a carnivorous bird, his form being that of a hawk.

Sarah scowled at him. "Toby-"

"He's such a dictator mother, even to you. How can you defend him?" Toby demanded, raising his voice to her. Mavias laid very still on the bed between them, becoming just another piece of furniture; something he had learned long ago from Mavid.

Sarah wasn't having it, standing up from the bed and facing Toby with her back straight and firm, "You will lower your voice," she commanded him, "Now, you have seen Mavid's back, you know that this is the way of things. If you would straighten up your act Mavias's back would be as smooth as yours. You cannot stand there and blame your father for holding you accountable to rules that you already knew were in place."

Toby's lip curled again. "Rules I never agreed to."

"You don't have to agree to them, but you still have to follow them and you know that. You are under Jareth's rule."

"I dream of the day that I'm not. When I'm king everyone will have to do what I say for a change."

Sarah didn't bother pointing out that everyone in the kingdom besides herself and Jareth already did have to do whatever Toby ordered, unless of course it contradicted one of Jareth's orders. "What will you do if they don't?"

Toby glanced up at her then, clearly confused as to what she was asking.

She rephrased it. "When you are king and have set your laws, what will you do if someone disobeys you?"

Toby caught on to where she was going with this, letting out a sigh and leaning against the wall behind him. "I will punish them."

"What will happen if you don't punish them?" Sarah prompted, wanting to make sure he truly got her point on why Jareth did as he did.

"They wont listen to any of my rules. Then no one will and I will loose any respect as a king."

"So how is what Jareth did any different from what you would have done?"

Toby was backed into a corner and the displeasure on his face from it was very apparent. Eventually he let out a long sigh and pinched the bridge of his nose between his fingers, slumping and moving over to sit on the bed on Mavias's other side.

Sarah made her way around the bed to his side, placing her hands on his slender shoulders and leaning over to kiss his forehead. "My sweet boy, it's not easy and believe me when I say I know it's not always fair, but that's the way it is. We have to accept that and move on as best we can."

Toby let out another long sigh, but eventually nodded his head in understanding and acceptance, his anger from before gone now. "Mother, can I ask you something?"

Sarah nodded her head. "Of course."

"Do you love father?"

The silence in the room following that was so complete that even breathing seemed loud and both of the young males looked up at her in inquisitive curiosity.

"Why do you ask that darling?" Sarah asked, taken completely by surprise at the question that had never been asked her before.

Toby shrugged, "I'm just asking."

Sarah straightened up, clasping her hands in front of her properly as she tried to formulate the best way to answer that question. "A very very long time ago, your father brought me to this world and told me he loved me because I had given him the most perfect gift in the world, you. I suppose I do love him, because he gave me back the more perfect gifts in the world, he gave me you, and Mavias, Marxus, and your siblings whom are all so dear to me and whom I love so very much." she reached past Toby to run her hand through Mavias's dark hair, so much like his own father's.

"So you love him just because you love us?" Toby asked, tapping into the root of what she was saying.

Sarah wished she had something better to tell him, that she had a story of love at first sight with the moon and stars aligning and birds singing in perfect harmony, but she certainly didn't and never would. As it turned out fairy tales were a myth even if your life became one.

That wasn't to say her life was awful, far from it really. She was looked down upon by no one, save for Kaleen and sometimes Jareth when she slipped up in her behavior. She had gradually acquired more freedoms over the time she had spent at Jareth's side; now she could come and go in and out of the castle as she pleased, although if she went further than the castle grounds Jareth insisted that she have Mavid or even Mavias escort her for protection, but she was able to visit with Cleo or Ishapelle whenever she pleased. She had even taken to Pegasus riding like a fish to water, finding great joy and beauty in the Labyrinth when soaring overtop of it. When she had become pregnant with Little Hamold, though it had been a long time coming she had been terrified, but he had been the sweetest little babe and although she hadn't been trying, when her daughter Precious had come along she had been thrilled. Overall Jareth was good to her, spoiling her at times when she was good to him. But he was still Jareth, and nothing changed what he had done to her, or put her through. He had turned her world and moved the stars, despite if she had wanted him to or not.

Sarah let out a sigh and crossed her arms over her stomach. "I wish I had a better answer for you darling. I have love for him, but I cannot say I am _in love_ with him."

"If he died tomorrow would you cry for him?" Toby countered, his infamous bluntness once more shocking Sarah. She wondered if maybe he had picked it up from Mavid. It was possible.

"Yes." she answered honestly, the simple answer anything but simple.

Toby nodded his head in acceptance of that.

Mavias shifted behind him and poked Toby's back to get his attention. Asking him something in the Prestine language. Toby turned and frowned at him, replying back so that Sarah couldn't understand.

"Boys," she hissed, scolding them. They knew she hated it when they did that around her since she wasn't even allowed to try to learn it. Once she had let Jareth know that she had started to pick up on small words, such as 'no', 'father', and 'kingdom'. He had ordered her to do her best to forget them and had struck a sprig across her hand three times as punishment. She could have gotten into far worse trouble than that if others suspected she was learning.

The boys both had the decency to look sheepish about it, turning back to her.

"What is it?" she demanded once it was obvious that Toby didn't have any intention to say on his own, looking back and forth between him and Mavias, who had wisely turned his head to face the opposite wall, feigning rest for his back.

Toby let out another sigh and ran his hand through his messy blonde hair, so ashen it was almost white. "I wanted to have it a bit more planned out, but I was thinking that while the warm season is upon us I might spend some time in the mountains, perhaps a few moons. Mavias would be with me of course."

Sarah was confused, "A trip? Where would you even stay in the mountains?"

Toby shrugged. "Where ever we can make shelter I suppose. The castle is a little crowded these days, with father being here and all," he tacked on a little bitterly. "I want the chance to do things my way for a change, not his way."

Sarah was surprised by all of this. "Well then why not visit your grandmother? She would like that very much and you enjoy the Devine Castle-"

"It's even stricter there. I just go from following father's laws to following Grandmother's. I'm not talking about leaving for good, just getting away for a bit."

"But Toby the mountains are dangerous! There's landslides and trolls and Spinx's and… the mountains!" Sarah pointed out.

"Father wasn't much older than I when he left the Devine City to shape the Goblin Cities into his own kingdom and began construction on the Labyrinth. If he could do all that than surely Mavias and I can survive a season in the mountains."

"We've taken outings in the mountains before," Mavias pointed out, dipping into the conversation.

"For a day or two," Sarah countered, convinced their 'plan' was silly and absurd.

"Mother I'm not saying tonight or even tomorrow, I'm still thinking on it. It's still just an idea."

Sarah tried to accept those words, making herself calm back down rather than fly off the handle, something she likely would have done in her younger years without hesitation. "You're right," she sighed, "This warrants more discussion though; with your father as well."

Toby rolled his eyes but grudgingly nodded his head in agreement. "Fine, are we allowed to go to sleep now?"

Sarah fought not to roll her eyes in response, "Yes fine, Love. We'll discuss it more tomorrow though." She warned him.

"Fine," Toby sighed, turning towards the bed for sleep.

"Hey!" Sarah huffed, astounded that he wasn't going to bid her goodnight.

Toby smirked back at her and stood up from the bed, wrapping his arms around her and placing a kiss against her cheek, which she returned. Before he could pull away she brought her hand up to caress his cheek. "Go easy on your father Toby, one day you'll have a son of your own, and then you will understand that you are not the only one who suffers through these punishments." Toby gave her a somewhat doubtful look, giving her another kiss to her cheek. Sarah didn't push it. He would learn on his own one day. "No more sneaking courtiers into the castle," she chastised him in closing, giving his backside a swat as he laughed and moved away from her.

She went over to Mavias, who had a smile of his own at this point. "Good night Sweet Boy," she said, kissing his forehead.

He pushed himself up a little and kissed her cheek in return. "Good night, can the brownies serve grapes tomorrow with breakfast?"

Sarah couldn't help but smile. "I'll see that they do," she assured him, knowing the fondness for grapes that he shared with his father. It was hard for her to deny him things like his favorite foods after a punishment had been administered. Mavias smiled a little wider and settled back down on the mattress.

Sarah gave them a final "Good night boys," before exiting the room, shutting the door softly behind her.

X

"Mistress, I wasn't expecting you to come up this late, the children are already down for the night." Tallia informed her, whispering as they stood in the nursery.

"I know," Sarah sighed, "I had hoped to come sooner, but all the eldest children in this castle needed seeing to first," she joked, sending Tallia a wink as the female returned a knowing smile, catching onto the fact that Sarah was referring to Jareth and Toby.

"Those are usually the ones requiring the most care," she agreed.

"I promised to see them before I went to bed though and I intend to."

"As you wish, the king has already been through to bid them sweet dreams," Tallia nodded, retaking her favorite seat in the rocking chair in the corner of the room.

Sarah went to the crib first, where her daughter Precious resided, fast asleep and cuter than believably possible swaddled in her little pink blanket. Sarah kissed her fingers and placed them against the babe's soft and warm little cheek. She couldn't help but beam as Precious stretched one tiny little hand up. Sarah put her index finger against the spread open little palm and the babe's tiny fingers wrapped around it as she relaxed again, her grip surprisingly firm for such a small thing. Sarah chuckled softly and pulled her hand back, watching as Precious's hand closed up into a little fist. She was very fitting to her namesake. Honestly Sarah had wanted to give her a more normal Aboveground name like Susan, or Andrea, but since she was born all Jareth and Mavid ever called her was 'precious'. No one seemed interested in referring to her as anything else and Sarah was willing enough to relent on how it absolutely fitted the sweet babe. Jareth had told her if she had another child she could name that one whatever she wanted. She was in no rush though.

Hamold had absolutely not been named by her, but rather by Jareth in honor of his father of course. She moved on from the crib over to the other side of the room to where the boys were sleeping in two small beds. She went in-between them, Hamold almost making her laugh out loud because the child was sleeping on his back with his head off the side of the frame, his little mouth open wide like he was waiting to catch rain or something. His blankets were in chaotic tangles around his body and Sarah noticed that one of his legs had managed to wrap itself up rather tightly. Even when he had been a babe he had been one to toss and turn all night. He would sleep soundly enough, but he was just constantly on the move. As if he wasn't everywhere at once when he was awake. It was impossible to convince him to sit still for more than a few minutes. It was a rare meal that Jareth didn't have to instruct Little Hamold to return to his seat because he had gotten up for something or other.

Sarah bent down and carefully lifted Hamold's head up and back onto the bed, his mouth closing, but then he immediately began snoring. Sarah clasped her hand firmly over her own mouth to keep from losing it but she just found it so funny. He could snore like a beast.

In the bed next to him Marxus stirred at the sudden sound, his little face scrunching up in a frown as he looked over at Hamold, then up to her. "It's alright sweet, go back to sleep," she encouraged him.

He cast another glare back over to Hamold for his snoring, "Can you turn him on his side? His right side?" the little elf requested.

Sarah did as the child attendant asked, gently turning Hamold's shoulders till he rested on his right side. The snoring immediately stopped and he was back to sleeping quietly.

"Thanks," Marxus mumbled before settling back in and falling right back to sleep.

He was already coming along as a great attendant, Sarah observed, reaching out to stroke his white hair affectionately as he slept.

He had come into their family only a week after she had given birth to Hamold, only born about a season before. Sarah had been prepared to take care of them just as she had done for Toby and Mavias, but they had still required attention and care too of course and Toby had just started to really get bouts of rebelliousness. Jareth had convinced Tallia to come back into their service at Sarah's request.

She leaned down and kissed both boys' foreheads, bidding them good night before standing up to make her way out of the nursery.

Tallia bowed to her on her way out. "Good night, Sarah."

"Sleep well, Tallia," Sarah smiled back, slipping out into the hallway. It was no longer referred to as the mirrored hallway, as the viewing mirror had been moved to locations she was not aware of; the wall left blank in it's absence. She wasn't about to ever touch it again anyway, but Jareth hadn't taken the chance and she had never inquired as to it's location.

She went back across the hall to her room, but the door was locked against her, indicating that Jareth expected her with him tonight, as was often the case. She didn't fight it, turning to his door instead.

X

Jareth looked up from the crystal he was holding as Sarah made her way into his room. He had been looking over the kingdom once more for the day before sleep, making sure that Toby hadn't made any changes while they had been away. So far nothing, but he wasn't convinced yet. He was in bed already, unclothed and covered only by the blankets that rested across his lap. Sarah gave him a small but tired smile when he looked up to her, crossing the room to stand by the bed. She was usually put in a better mood after making the nightly rounds with the children. "Are the boys asleep then?" Jareth inquired, knowing that the rest of his children were.

"They are by now I'm sure."

"Mavias?"

"His back will heal quickly. There wasn't any serious damage done." Sarah sighed, sitting down on the edge of the bed next to him. She turned her back to him and lifted up her hair, wanting him to finish his earlier work on the laces of her dress and corset.

Jareth was relieved to hear that, dissipating the crystal and turning to her so he could start unlacing all her bindings.

"Toby and Mavias said that they were thinking of going to the mountains," she sighed.

Jareth frowned in confusion. "For what?"

She shrugged. "A trip I guess, Toby said for a few months. He just wants some independence I suppose. I said we would all discuss it later. It should be easy enough for us to talk them out of it. If he wants to have independence maybe we can set up your hunting lodge for them, that way we can monitor them at all times."

Jareth couldn't help but laugh at her idea of 'independence'. He finished the laces to her dress and reached past it to start on the corset underneath. "Actually I think the mountains may be a good idea."

Sarah laughed then, but Jareth did not see why. At his silence she turned around, her corset laces pulled from his hands as she twisted to face him; trying to determine if he had been joking, which he hadn't. "You cant be serious."

Jareth simply shrugged, "I took trips when I was around his age, a day there a week here. Mavid and I once spent almost two full winters on a ship traveling down the coasts. Being a Captain was a grand lesson towards becoming a king."

"You never told me that. I didn't think you had ever stepped foot on a ship."

Jareth simply smirked at her, pleased that he could still surprise her. Though truth be told there had been a lot he had done in his life that he had not mentioned to her, some were things she never needed to know.

She didn't seem as amused by it as he was. "Jareth, you cannot seriously think that the boys going off to the mountains is a good idea. It's much too dangerous for them."

"They are not boys anymore though Sarah, they have grown into men. At least, their bodies have, it is time for the rest of them to start doing the same. Perhaps if it will ease you in your worries we can find someone to guide them through. Someone that knows the mountains well that can be trusted."

As though she had been struck by lightening Sarah suddenly stiffened and her eyes got wide. A look of excitement spread across her face and she leaned towards him so suddenly that he actually flinched back despite her grin. "Oh! Oh Jareth that's brilliant! Long ago you sent Hoggle, Ludo, Sir Didymus, and Ambrosius to the mountains. You know that I have visited them a few times since then. I can't believe I momentarily forgot they lived in the mountains too. I'm sure if I asked them they'd be happy to help us out and Toby and Mavias would probably think they're great. I'm sure they would love it."

Jareth couldn't help but smirk at her sudden enthusiasm for the idea she had just been so firmly against. "Would that give you peace of mind?"

She nodded her head. "Very much."

Jareth nodded in agreement. "We can perhaps discuss it with them then. I think Toby would enjoy that too. Turn back around," he instructed.

Sarah turned back so that he could finish up with her corset laces, the creamy skin of her back showing more and more with each lace pulled.

The door to the bathroom opened and Mavid came out from the bath he had been taking inside, a towel wrapped loosely around his hips and another one in his hands which he used to blot at the water clinging to his face. Sarah paid him no mind, letting out a long and contented sigh as Jareth undid the last lace. Mavid's presence went unacknowledged by Sarah for the moment, unsurprised that he was there as he was a common visitor in their room these days.

"How are the boys doing?" Mavid asked, running the towel through his hair.

"They'll be just fine," Sarah shrugged again, getting up from the bed, holding her dress against herself modestly.

She stepped away from the bedside but Jareth reached out quickly and took hold of the flowing material of her skirt. "Where are you going?" he asked, his tone playfully leaving no room for her to think she was actually going anywhere.

She seemed unable to help herself as she smirked and rolled her eyes. "I'm going to go to the bathroom," she relied innocently, managing to slip his grip.

"Stop her Mavid, that is an order," Jareth commanded in jest, throwing back his covers to go after her himself, excited for the challenge she offered.

Sarah reflexively gave an excitable shriek and sprinted from Jareth towards the bathroom, but Mavid blocked her path, a grin cracking across his own face as he easily intercepted her, holding her about the waist so she couldn't escape as Jareth came up behind her, the two males using their bodies to cage her and she relaxed in their all too familiar embrace.

Sarah turned from Mavid to look over her shoulder at Jareth, looking amused with their antics. "I don't suppose I can convince you that I'm actually tired tonight?" she inquired as Mavid's lips and teeth sought out her neck from in front of her.

"Silence," Jareth hushed her. She opened her mouth to respond but he didn't let her. "Don't defy me."

She didn't, keeping silent any reservations she might have had as he claimed her lips for himself in a kiss.

X

The end.

X

It's up to you as the reader to decide if this is a happy ending or a sad ending, which is entirely up to how you read through and interpreted the story. Some may think it horrible, and some may think it grand.

My goal in this ending was the same as it was throughout writing my story; to not impose upon anyone how to think and react to this tale and it's themes, as most any fiction inevitably does, but for the reader to reflect and really decide for themselves how they feel about this story.

Love it or hate it, if it ever made any of my readers take a second thought about something they felt sure of, even if they only arrived more firmly at the same conclusion as they had before hand, the fact that I made people think and feel and doubt and hope with this simple and humble little tale of Labyrinth fan fiction is more than enough for me to consider my abilities as a writer successful.

Xxx

New Note: My skills have increased a LOT since writing this. Like most authors I find it difficult to read back through now because of how much higher my standards of my works are, but there will always be the fondness of the fun I had with this story at the time and the knowledge of what it gave to over 20,000 regular readers who left well over a thousand reviews during the time of its initial posting from 2010 to 2012. I thank you all, and those that have given it a chance now too. Thank you!

I hope to repost more old works in the days to come, but urge anyone that found enjoyment here to check out my new passion project The Book of Lo; a Fayrie Tale, by R. N. Floyd. It is 700 pages of original fantasy about the world/culture of the fae and a human slave girl who doesn't quite belong there. Now it is on sale at Amazon. Just look for the dragon skull on the cover.

Starting TODAY till the 9th the digital copy is on sale for .99 cents, or you can get both that and the print through Amazon matchbook for less than twenty bucks. Again, thank you for your support.


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